South Korean Researchers Develop Selective AhR Inhibitor '7k' as Novel Immuno-Oncology Candidate for Colorectal Cancer

News | 2025-11-19 18:53:17
[mediK / HEALTH IN NEWS] The Preclinical Center of K-MEDI hub (Daegu-Gyeongbuk Medical Innovation Foundation) and researchers at Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) announced that they have developed a novel immuno-oncology candidate that selectively inhibits the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and published their findings in the international journal Pharmaceutics.

AhR is a protein that modulates immune responses and assists cancer cells in evading immune attack. The team focused on the fact that inhibiting this receptor enhances the anticancer capabilities of immune cells.

The researchers designed a series of pyrazolopyrimidine compounds and validated their activity in preclinical studies. Among them, the compound “7k” demonstrated potent AhR inhibitory effects, with oral administration showing a high bioavailability of 71% and a stable half-life.

In addition, 7k suppressed AhR-related genes and the PD-1/PD-L1 immune evasion pathway in colorectal cancer cell lines while exhibiting selective antiproliferative effects without impacting normal cells, suggesting potential for combination immuno-oncology therapy.

(Photo provided by K-MEDI hub)
(Photo provided by K-MEDI hub)

Myung-Hoon Jung, director of the Preclinical Center, stated, “Based on this research, we plan to strengthen a one-stop immuno-oncology drug development system from candidate discovery to clinical entry.”

Koo-Sun Park, chairman of the board, said, “Developing a new mechanism candidate that can increase response rates to immuno-oncology agents in intractable cancers such as colorectal cancer is a meaningful achievement,” adding, “We expect this research to promote the discovery of various immuno-oncology candidates and new drug development.”

Kim Kuk Ju medi·K TEAM press@themedik.kr
Copyright © 2020 mediK. All rights reserved.

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