ANGLE plc, the AIM-listed liquid biopsy company, has inked a major supplier agreement with pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca. The £550,000 deal will see ANGLE develop a new circulating tumor cell (CTC) assay to detect androgen receptor (AR) status in prostate cancer patients.
ANGLE shares surged 20% higher in very early trade on Friday.
The AR assay will utilise ANGLE’s proprietary Parsortix system, which can harvest intact CTCs from a simple blood sample. By analysing the AR levels in these CTCs, clinicians can assess the effectiveness of prostate cancer therapies throughout a patient’s treatment.
“This is further validation of ANGLE’s Parsortix system which shows potential for long-term large-scale revenues in bringing innovative new cancer drugs to the market. We anticipate that success in this first phase of assay development may lead to much larger contracts for use of the assay in clinical trials,” said ANGLE Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Newland.
The new AR assay adds to ANGLE’s pipeline of CTC assays for drug development research. In April, the company announced a deal with AstraZeneca to develop a CTC test for DNA damage. With over 130 active clinical trials related to androgen receptor therapies, the AR assay promises significant commercial opportunities.
Development of the AR assay will take place at ANGLE’s UK labs, with completion expected by early 2025. A successful outcome could lead to an ongoing role for Parsortix in supporting AstraZeneca’s prostate cancer studies and therapeutic monitoring.
