Synta Announces Presentation on Hsp90 inhibitor Drug Conjugate Platform at 26th EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium

LEXINGTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 19, 2014-- Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. (NASDAQ: SNTA) announced today that a poster highlighting preclinical results from its Hsp90 inhibitor Drug Conjugate (HDC) platform is being presented at the 26th EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium in Barcelona.

“This poster highlights our ongoing evaluation of multiple candidates from the HDC platform. The preclinical results for our lead candidates not only demonstrate broad activity across several tumor types, but also the ability for HDCs to induce prolonged antitumor effects as compared to well-established cytotoxic agents,” said Weiwen Ying, Vice President, Discovery Chemistry at Synta. “In addition, the platform is not limited to using traditional cytotoxic therapeutics as payloads. A number of commonly used small molecule anticancer agents may also be incorporated, including tyrosine kinase inhibitors, proteosome inhibitors, small molecule immunotherapeutics, and other molecularly targeted agents. By leveraging the preferential retention characteristic of the Hsp90 targeting arm of an HDC in tumors, intratumoral exposure and antitumor potency for a wide array of payloads can be potentially improved. ”

“We are encouraged by the progress the team has achieved to date with candidates arising from the HDC platform and the promise that the platform holds for both internal development and partnerships,” said Anne Whitaker, President and Chief Executive Officer of Synta. “We continue to evaluate options for efficiently advancing candidates from this platform and look forward to providing updates in the future.”

Information regarding the poster presentation is as follows:

Hsp90 Inhibitor Drug Conjugates (HDCs): Payloads and Possibilities

Abstract number: 260
Presentation: Thursday, November 20, 6:00 PM Local Time
Presenter: Dinesh Chimmanamada, PhD, Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp., Lexington, Massachusetts.

A copy of the poster is available at www.syntapharma.com.

About Hsp90 inhibitor Drug Conjugates (HDC)

HDCs are small-molecule drugs consisting of an Hsp90 inhibitor (targeting moiety) joined to an anti-cancer agent (payload) via a cleavable chemical linker optimized for controlled release of payload drug inside cancer cells. They exploit the preferential retention of Hsp90 inhibitors in tumors to selectively deliver anti-cancer payloads. HDCs represent a promising new therapeutic class with the potential to enhance the safety and efficacy of a wide range of small molecule anti-cancer drugs.

Synta has established proof of concept for HDC lead candidates in preclinical studies and has developed HDCs using a range of Hsp90 inhibitor moieties, cleavable linkers, and over 40 anti-cancer payloads. The latter include cytotoxic chemotherapeutics, kinase inhibitors, hormone therapies, immunomodulators, epigenetic modifiers, and other small molecule anticancer agents, creating the potential for next-generation compounds in each of these categories. Synta has filed worldwide patent applications that include comprehensive claims covering the HDC platform, compositions of matter, methods for identifying therapeutically effective compounds, and methods of use of such compounds against a wide range of diseases and conditions.

About Synta Pharmaceuticals

Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing, and commercializing small molecule drugs to extend and enhance the lives of patients with severe medical conditions, including cancer and chronic inflammatory diseases. Synta has a unique chemical compound library, an integrated discovery engine, and a diverse pipeline of clinical- and preclinical-stage drug candidates with distinct mechanisms of action and novel chemical structures. All Synta drug candidates were invented by Synta scientists using its compound library and discovery capabilities. For more information, please visit www.syntapharma.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This media release may contain forward-looking statements about Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. Such forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "will", "would", "should", "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "plans", "believes", "may", "estimates", "predicts", "projects", or similar expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements including statements related to the potential for HDC candidates to demonstrate broad activity across tumor types, the potential for prolonged antitumor effect with an HDC candidate, the potential associated with various payloads delivered via the HDC platform, the potential to use cytotoxic agents, tyrosine kinase inhibitors, proteosome inhibitors, small molecule immunotherapeutics and other molecularly targeted agents as payloads for HDC candidates, the potential for HDC candidates to have improved intratumoral exposure and antitumor potency, the promise of the HDC platform for internal development and partnerships, and the potential of the HDC platform to enhance the safety and efficacy of a wide range of small molecule anti-cancer drugs, reflect Synta’s current views with respect to future events and are based on assumptions and subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including those described in "Risk Factors" of our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Synta undertakes no obligation to publicly update forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Source: Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp.

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