Overview

• In mouse experiments, fluorescently tagged CAPPSID concentrated in tumors, bypassed systemic antiviral antibodies and doubled the time to ethical tumor-size limits compared with virus alone.
• CAPPSID eradicated subcutaneous small cell lung cancer tumors in fully immunocompetent mice without causing apparent side effects.
• The oncolytic Senecavirus A was engineered to require a bacterial protease for maturation, restricting its replication to tumor sites populated by the carrier Salmonella.
• Researchers have filed a patent (WO2024254419A2) for the CAPPSID system and are planning safety studies in non-human primates along with evaluations across additional cancer models.
• The team is developing robust genetic safeguards to curb RNA-virus mutation risks and is exploring the use of clinically tested bacterial strains and immunotherapy combinations ahead of human trials.