On December 3, 2019 Oncorus, Inc., a viral immunotherapies company focused on driving innovation to transform outcomes for cancer patients, reported that its President and Chief Executive Officer, Theodore (Ted) Ashburn, M.D., Ph.D., will present at the 31st Annual Piper Jaffray Healthcare Conference in New York, NY on Wednesday, December 4, 2019 at 8:30 a.m. ET (Press release, Oncorus, DEC 3, 2019, View Source [SID1234551887]).

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On December 3, 2019 KSQ Therapeutics, a biotechnology company using its proprietary CRISPRomics discovery platform to achieve higher probabilities of success in drug development, reported that KSQ CEO David Meeker, M.D., will present at the Piper Jaffray 31st Annual Healthcare Conference on Tuesday, December 3, 2019 at 8:30 a.m. ET in New York (Press release, KSQ Therapeutics, DEC 3, 2019, View Source [SID1234551886]). Dr. Meeker will provide a corporate overview and update on the company’s research and development programs in immuno-oncology and adoptive cell therapies.

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The company has declared its lead program, a first-in-class biomarker-enabled monotherapy inhibitor of TO-4, an undisclosed target in the DNA Damage Repair (DDR) pathway, which the company plans to develop for ovarian cancer and triple negative breast cancer. The small molecule candidate has shown activity in certain BRCA-mutant and homologous recombination deficient (HRD) cancer models. The company’s second program is KSQ-001, part of KSQ’s engineered tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (eTIL) adoptive cell therapy program, which will be developed for the treatment of PD-1 refractory solid tumors.

"Over the past year, we have made significant progress in driving the translational process for the lead programs identified from our proprietary CRISPRomics discovery engine and advancing them toward development-stage programs," said Dr. Meeker. "Our focus for the year ahead will be on preparing the clinical program for our lead immuno-oncology candidate and initiating IND-enabling studies for our first adoptive cell therapy candidate. We have a high degree of confidence in the potential of both of these programs because of the insights that we generated that led to their discovery and the significant medical need in the therapeutic areas that we are pursuing."

On December 3, 2019 IONTAS Limited (IONTAS), a leader in the discovery and optimisation of fully human antibodies, reported it has entered into a collaboration agreement with Adaptate Biotherapeutics, developers of antibody-based therapeutics for modulation of gamma delta T-cells (Press release, Iontas, DEC 3, 2019, View Source [SID1234551885]). The agreement is to generate and optimise antibodies for novel immuno-oncology targets, including access to IONTAS’ proprietary Mammalian Display technology to select antibodies with optimal biophysical properties.

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IONTAS’ proprietary technology enables the construction of large libraries of stable cell lines displaying human antibodies on their surface. As well as generating an abundance of therapeutic antibody leads, the technology also addresses "developability" issues early in discovery; increasing the likelihood of successful progress through the development process. Under the terms of the collaboration, the project provides Adaptate Biotherapeutics with access to IONTAS’ proprietary Mammalian Display technology, allowing the selection of high affinity antibodies based on their function, stability, expression and developability thereby facilitating a speedy transition through Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls (CMC) and eventual manufacturing.

Dr John McCafferty, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of IONTAS, commented: "Recently spun out of GammaDelta Therapeutics, Adaptate Biotherapeutics is already a leading company in the field of gamma delta T cell therapeutics and it is a privilege to be working with such an innovative team. This collaboration is further validation of our platform, including our Mammalian Display technology, and adds to an expanding portfolio of partners that enjoy the benefit of combining selection for affinity with developability during the initial steps of drug discovery. Subsequently, the resulting panels of "developable" antibodies facilitate manufacture and reduce the risk of delays and potential product failure by detecting and avoiding problematic clones at the outset. Our aim is to ensure the right lead is selected first time, every time."

Dr Natalie Mount, Chief Executive Officer of Adaptate Biotherapeutics, said: "IONTAS has developed an impressive track record in delivering therapeutic antibodies. We selected them as our partner because of their extensive experience in overcoming antibody project challenges using their industry-leading platforms. We anticipate that the combination of IONTAS’ antibody discovery capabilities and our innovative approach to gamma delta T cell-targeted therapeutics will facilitate the accelerated entry of our oncology portfolio to the clinic."

Dr Neil Butt, Chief Business Officer of IONTAS, will be at Antibody Engineering & Therapeutics, 9–13 December 2019, San Diego, CA.

Dr John McCafferty and Dr Neil Butt will attend the 38th Annual J.P.Morgan Healthcare Conference, 13–16 January 2020, San Francisco, CA.

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On December 3, 2019 Oragenics, Inc. (NYSE American: OGEN), a leader in the development of new antibiotics against infectious diseases and effective treatments for oral mucositis, reported that Alan Joslyn, Ph.D., president and CEO of Oragenics, Inc. will be a featured presenter at the LD Micro Main Event on Tuesday, December 10, 2019 at 1:00 PM Pacific Time at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel in Los Angeles, CA (Press release, Oragenics, DEC 3, 2019, View Source [SID1234551884]).

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Dr. Joslyn will provide an overview of the company’s business model and growth strategy and will be available for one-on-one meetings.

For those interested in attending or for registered attendees who wish to request meetings, please contact David Scher at [email protected] or visit www.ldmicro.com for more information.

On December 3, 2019 Oncternal Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ONCT), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel oncology therapies, reported that clinical data updates for cirmtuzumab, its investigational anti-ROR1 monoclonal antibody, will be presented at upcoming medical conferences (Press release, Oncternal Therapeutics, DEC 3, 2019, View Source [SID1234551883]).

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Interim data from the ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical study of cirmtuzumab in combination with ibrutinib in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) will be presented at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) Annual Meeting that will be held December 7-10, 2019, in Orlando, FL.

Abstract: Cirmtuzumab, a ROR1 Targeted mAb, Reverses Cancer Stemness, and Its Combination with Ibrutinib Is Safe and Effective: Planned Analysis of the CIRLL Phase 1/2 Trial for CLL and MCL (abstract #1755)
Session Name: 642. CLL: Therapy, excluding Transplantation: Poster I
Session Date: Saturday, December 7, 2019
Session Time: 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Location: Hall B, Level 2 (Orange County Convention Center)
Initial data from the ongoing, investigator-sponsored Phase 1 clinical study of cirmtuzumab in combination with paclitaxel in patients with Her2 negative, metastatic or locally advanced unresectable breast cancer will be presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS) that will be held December 10-14, 2019, in San Antonio, TX.

Abstract: Phase 1b Trial of Cirmtuzumab and Paclitaxel for Locally Advanced, Unresectable and Metastatic Breast Cancer
Session Name: PS3. Poster Session 3
Session Date: Thursday, December 12, 2019
Session Time: 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Location: Hall 1 (Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center)
About Cirmtuzumab

Cirmtuzumab is an investigational, potentially first-in-class monoclonal antibody targeting ROR1, or Receptor tyrosine kinase-like Orphan Receptor 1. Cirmtuzumab is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial in combination with ibrutinib for the treatment of CLL and MCL, in a collaboration with the University of California San Diego School of Medicine and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). In addition, an investigator-initiated Phase 1 clinical trial of cirmtuzumab in combination with paclitaxel for women with metastatic breast cancer is being conducted at the UC San Diego School of Medicine. CIRM has also provided funding to support development programs for cirmtuzumab and a CAR-T therapy that targets ROR1, which is currently in preclinical development as a potential treatment for hematologic cancers and solid tumors.

ROR1 is a potentially attractive target for cancer therapy because it is an oncofetal antigen – a protein that confers a survival and fitness advantage when reactivated and expressed by tumor cells. When expressed by hematologic malignancies such as CLL and MCL, ROR1 acts as a receptor for the tumor growth factor Wnt5a. Researchers at the UC San Diego School of Medicine discovered that targeting a critical epitope on ROR1 was key to inhibiting Wnt5a activation, specifically targeting ROR1 expressing tumors. This led to the development of cirmtuzumab that binds this critical epitope of ROR1, which is highly expressed on many different cancers but not on normal tissues. Preclinical data showed that when cirmtuzumab bound to ROR1, it blocked Wnt5a signaling, inhibited tumor cell proliferation, migration and survival, and induced differentiation of the tumor cells. Cirmtuzumab is in clinical development and has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for any indication.