Aura Biosciences to Participate in Upcoming Investor Conferences

On May 25, 2022 Aura Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: AURA), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing a novel class of virus-like drug conjugate (VDC) therapies for multiple oncology indications, reported that members of its executive team will participate in the following upcoming investor conferences (Press release, Aura Biosciences, MAY 25, 2022, View Source [SID1234615045]):

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Cowen’s Virtual 3rd Annual Oncology Innovation Summit on Thursday, June 2, 2022. Fireside chat at 9:00 a.m. ET.
Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference at the New York Marriot Marquis on Wednesday, June 8, 2022. Presentation at 1:30 p.m. ET.
A live webcast of the Cowen fireside chat and Jefferies presentation will be available on the "Investors & Media" page under the "Events & Presentations" section of the Company’s website at View Source, where a replay of the webcast will be archived for 90 days following the presentation date.

Endeavor Doses First Patient in Phase 2 Oncology Study Evaluating the Safety and Efficacy of ENV-101 (Taladegib)

On May 25, 2022 Endeavor BioMedicines, a clinical-stage biotechnology company targeting the core drivers of terminal diseases including oncology and fibrosis, reported the first patient has been dosed in an open-label Phase 2 study evaluating ENV-101 (taladegib) in patients with advanced solid tumors harboring Patched-1 (PTCH1) loss of function mutations (Press release, Endeavor BioMedicines, MAY 25, 2022, View Source [SID1234615044]).

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Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing

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"Dosing the first patient in the Phase 2 study of ENV-101 is a critical step for advancing medicines that treat cancer by attacking the genetic cause of disease," said John Hood, Ph.D., Co-Founder, CEO and Chairman of Endeavor BioMedicines. "The clinical effects of ENV-101, a small molecule inhibitor of the Hedgehog signaling pathway for the treatment of cancer have been evaluated in nearly 200 participants so far. ENV-101 has so far demonstrated exceptional ability to inhibit this oncogenic pathway and induce regression of tumors dependent on it. We hope this trajectory will continue as the drug advances through this next stage of clinical development."

The multi-center study employs a two-stage design to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ENV-101, a potent Hedgehog (Hh) pathway inhibitor, in patients with histologically or cytologically confirmed refractory advanced solid tumors characterized by loss of function (LOF) mutations in the PTCH1 gene. Endeavor expects to enroll 44 adults who are 18 and older in the first part of the study. Patients will receive 200 mg of ENV-101 once a day in one arm of the trial, and 300 mg of ENV-101 once a day in the other arm. The primary endpoint of the trial is Objective Response Rate (ORR) – comprised of Complete Response (CR) and Partial Response (PR), measured by Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors, Version 1.1 (RECIST 1.1) – as determined by an independent review through study completion. Confirmed CR or PR will be defined as a repeat assessment performed no less than 28 days after the criteria for response is first met.

Dr. Christopher Vaughn, M.D., Oncologist at Hematology Oncology Associates of Fredericksburg (HOAF) in Virginia, stated, "It is wonderful and exciting to bring potentially landscape-changing new therapeutic advances to our patient community. I fully appreciate the collaboration and support between the Endeavor team and HOAF’s research department. The Endeavor trial embodies the model for individualized therapy and for potentially better response rates with limited side effects for our patients."

"ENV-101 is for patients with tumor mutations in the Hedgehog pathway, which affect approximately 2% of all cancers, amounting to roughly 30,000-40,000 patients annually in the U.S. alone," said Dr. Srikanth Pendyala, Chief Medical Officer, Endeavor Biomedicines. "Mutations in this pathway can aberrantly activate downstream signaling resulting in proliferation, survival and metastasis of cancer cells. ENV-101 is intended to inhibit the activity of the Hedgehog pathway which may significantly benefit the lives of cancer patients with these mutations."

ENV-101: Targeting the Hedgehog Signaling Pathway in Oncology and Fibrosis

ENV-101 (taladegib), an orally available small molecule inhibitor of the Hedgehog signaling pathway, has already demonstrated preliminary clinical efficacy and safety in nearly 200 subjects enrolled across six completed studies. Initially targeted for a broad group of patients with basal cell carcinoma (BCC), Endeavor is now investigating precision therapy approaches for ENV-101 in multiple types of cancers driven by oncogenic driver mutations in PTCH1, as well as in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).

PTCH1 oncogenic driver mutations in the Hedgehog signaling pathway are found in approximately 2% of all cancers. Because of its prevalence across multiple types of cancer, Endeavor plans to enroll patients in a tumor agnostic study that includes any patient with oncogenic hedgehog mutations irrespective of tissue of origin. Endeavor is currently enrolling patients in an open label Phase 2 clinical trial in oncology (www.clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT05199584).

For more information about our clinical trial please contact us at: [email protected] or call us at 858-727-3199.

Ellipses Pharma and SunRock Biopharma Enter Into a Licensing Agreement for a First-in-class Bifunctional HER3:TRAIL Fusion Protein

On May 25, 2022 SunRock Biopharma S.L. ("SunRock"), a biopharmaceutical company that is developing a portfolio of innovative bispecific antibodies to treat incurable cancer, and Ellipses Pharma Limited ("Ellipses"), a global drug development company focused on accelerating the development of new oncology treatments, reported that they have entered into an exclusive licensing agreement for SRB22, a fully human bifunctional HER3:TRAIL fusion protein, which going forward will be known as EP0017 (Press release, Ellipses Pharma, MAY 25, 2022, View Source [SID1234615043]).

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Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing

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Under the agreement, Ellipses has been granted global rights to develop and commercialise EP0017 and will assume the full cost and responsibility for the remaining pre-clinical and clinical development of the compound. In line with its strategy, Ellipses intends to out licence EP0017 for commercialisation if it proves safe and effective in clinical trials. SunRock will continue to be involved in the development of EP0017 to ensure efficient translational activities through a service agreement with Ellipses. If Ellipses out-licences EP0017, SunRock will also receive milestone payments and royalties.

EP0017 is a first-in-class bifunctional fusion protein with a dual mechanism of action. It selectively targets HER3, which is overexpressed in several different tumour types, and additionally, binds to the tumour death receptors DR4 and DR5, inducing tumour cell death. Promising data has been generated in a range of preclinical models that demonstrate the potential of EP0017.

Laureano Simón, Ph.D., CEO of SunRock Biopharma, said
"The agreement with Ellipses will speed up the development of EP0017, moving this potentially life-changing asset towards the clinic and then hopefully towards cancer patients who desperately need novel approaches to fight invasive tumours."

Rajan Jethwa, MD, CEO of Ellipses Pharma commented:
"Our mission is to rapidly develop innovative cancer therapies, to get these therapies into the clinic as quickly as possible and potentially save more lives. We are excited about the opportunity to progress the development of this promising asset and look forward to working with SunRock to expedite the preclinical work."

First Guardant Health Liquid Biopsy Testing Service in Europe Now Operational at Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology

On May 25, 2022 Guardant Health, Inc. (Nasdaq: GH), a leading precision oncology company, and the Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO), one of Europe’s leading cancer research organizations, reported that the first blood-based cancer testing services in Europe based on Guardant Health’s industry-leading digital sequencing platform are now available at the VHIO liquid biopsy testing facility in Barcelona (Press release, Guardant Health, MAY 25, 2022, View Source [SID1234615042]).

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Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing

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Guardant Health and VHIO established the partnership in January 2021 to give more patients access to Guardant Health’s industry leading liquid biopsy technology. This testing service will provide essential genomic information through comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) for patients with any solid cancerous tumor. From a simple blood draw, the test identifies patients with actionable biomarkers more quickly than starting with tissue biopsy. The VHIO testing services will be available for clinical research and clinical care.

"The opening of this service will give more patients with advanced cancer access to blood-based biomarker testing and help their healthcare professionals make more informed treatment decisions," said Helmy Eltoukhy, Guardant Health co-CEO. "We look forward to continuing to build our partnership with VHIO, working together to ensure cancer patients across Spain and beyond have access to the latest innovations in precision oncology and striving to achieve better patient outcomes."

"The incorporation of this technology in VHIO will enable us to continue advancing towards precision medicine, improving the use of liquid biopsy to detect genomic alterations in tumors and come out with more effective treatments for patients," said Dr Josep Tabernero, Director of VHIO and Head of the Medical Oncology Department of Vall d’Hebron University Hospital. "Our goal is to ensure that the use of liquid biopsy becomes a common diagnostic option, so that oncologists can use it to determine the best treatment for their patients. Thanks to this agreement, we can move towards this scenario."

"Implementing this technology in our lab is a leap forward in the liquid field for us. We have performed an in-house extensive analytical validation of the assay and we attain very high levels of sensitivity and specificity with the test," said Dr Ana Vivancos, Group Leader of the VHIO Cancer Genomics Group, where this testing will take place. "Guardant Health’s next generation broad panel sequencing technology gives us the capabilities to screen for a large number of gene mutations and provides complete genomic results without the need for a tissue sample."

In 2020, there were over 282,000 new cancer cases in Spain and approximately 113,000 cancer deaths, with lung cancer and colon cancer being the leading causes of cancer-related death.1 Guardant Health’s tests are used by oncologists around the world to guide treatment decisions across solid tumor cancers, and by pharmaceutical companies and academic researchers in clinical trials to accelerate precision medicine drug development.

Agenus to Participate at Jefferies Healthcare Conference

On May 25, 2022 Agenus (NASDAQ: AGEN), an immuno-oncology company with an extensive pipeline of therapeutics designed to activate the immune response to cancers and infections, reported that Dr. Garo Armen, Chairman and CEO of Agenus and Dr. Steven O’Day, Chief Medical Officer, will participate in a fireside chat at the Jefferies Healthcare Conference on Thursday, June 9, 2022, at 11:30 AM EST (Press release, Agenus, MAY 25, 2022, View Source [SID1234615041]). The Conference will be held at the New York Marriott Marquis from June 8th – 10th, during which Agenus will host one-on-one meetings with investors.

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Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing

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A webcast/replay will be available for 90 days after completion of the fireside chat and may be accessed via View Source or on the Events & Presentations page of the Agenus website at View Source