Beactica Therapeutics AB, a Swedish precision medicine company, has selected BEA-28 as a preclinical candidate for its TEAD programme, which is aimed at developing novel therapies for a range of aggressive, difficult-to-treat solid tumours, including cancers where resistance to existing treatments remains a major clinical challenge.
BEA-28 is a first-in-class small molecule targeted degrader of the TEAD transcription factors, key effectors of the Hippo-YAP/TAZ pathway.
Rather than blocking a binding pocket, BEA-28 removes the TEAD proteins and all their functions – an approach suited to cancers where pathway activity drives tumour growth or treatment resistance.
In preclinical studies, BEA-28 showed robust tumour regressions at well-tolerated doses, and restored sensitivity to KRAS inhibitors in resistant models. The programme advances a biomarker-led, combination strategy, with a high unmet need cancer as the lead indication.
BEA-28 was selected after meeting predefined success criteria covering chemistry, in vitro and in vivo pharmacology, ADME and pharmacokinetic properties.
The molecule will now advance into comprehensive candidate validation, including non-regulatory (pre-GLP) toxicology, scale-up chemistry, and advanced formulation profiling. Studies formally supporting IND-enabling requirements will be initiated following candidate drug nomination.
