On August 4, 2023 Achilles Therapeutics plc (NASDAQ: ACHL), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing AI-powered precision T cell therapies targeting clonal neoantigens to treat solid tumors, reported its financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2023, and recent business highlights (Press release, Achilles Therapeutics, AUG 4, 2023, View Source [SID1234633813]).

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"We look forward to additional clinical data in the fourth quarter of this year from our clonal neoantigen-reactive T cell (cNeT) therapy for the treatment of advanced NSCLC (CHIRON) and metastatic malignant melanoma (THETIS) and are encouraged by the improved manufacturing performance of our VELOS Process 2," said Dr Iraj Ali, Chief Executive Officer of Achilles Therapeutics. "We are also very excited about the developments in our AI-driven bioinformatics platform PELEUSTM. PELEUS uses a unique multi-region approach to provide validated and accurate identification of personalized clonal neoantigens. Our newly developed neoRankerTM tool is trained on a proprietary dataset of over 10,000 neoantigens and we calculate that it is potentially twice as good at identifying multiple memory T cell responses than existing deep-learning models. We believe this could be highly differentiated in the design of neoantigen vaccines and further strengthens our leadership position in the field of neoantigen identification."

Business Highlights

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Introduced and presented data at the 7th Annual Immuno-Oncology Summit Europe on the neoRankerTM tool, Achilles Therapeutics’ new immunogenicity prediction module of the AI-Powered PELEUS platform that uniquely identifies the most potent clonal neoantigens. The new AI module demonstrated potential superiority to commonly used AI tools (BigMHC) in identifying and prioritizing targets for personalized antigen approaches, supporting potential implementation into the Company’s ongoing TIL-based clinical programs in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and melanoma, and into other modalities including clonal neoantigen cancer vaccines
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US patent number 11,634,773 granted on technology exclusively licensed by Achilles from the Francis Crick Institute, University College London, and Cancer Research Horizons, for selecting neoantigens that are presented by HLA molecules determined to be present in a patient’s tumor

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Regained compliance with the minimum bid price requirement of Nasdaq Listing Rule 5450(a)(1) on July 28, 2023, as confirmed by a written notice received from the Listing Qualifications Department of The Nasdaq Stock Market on July 31, 2023

Financial Highlights

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Cash and cash equivalents: Cash and cash equivalents were $143.7 million as of June 30, 2023, as compared to $173.3 million as of December 31, 2022. The Company anticipates that its cash and cash equivalents are sufficient to fund its planned operations through 2025.
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Research and development (R&D) expenses: R&D expenses were $13.8 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023, a decrease of $1.0 million compared to $14.8 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2022. The decrease was primarily driven by changes to R&D priorities.
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General and administrative (G&A) expenses: G&A expenses were $4.3 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023, a decrease of $1.5 million compared to $5.8 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2022. This decrease was primarily driven by changes in cost allocations, as well as lower professional fees and personnel costs.
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Net loss: Net loss for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023 was $16.8 million or $0.42 per share compared to $17.3 million or $0.44 per share for the second quarter ended June 30, 2022.

2H 2023 Focus and Upcoming Events

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Clinical Data: Report clinical and translational science data from 15 to 20 additional patients treated with cNeT monotherapy in NSCLC and melanoma, and with a cNeT/anti-PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor combination in melanoma, in the fourth quarter of the year
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Translational Science: Leverage the Company’s translational science platform to define the cNeT product features associated with clinical responses
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Clinical Activity: Drive the potential for additional confirmed responses in CHIRON and THETIS patients by delivering higher cNeT doses and improved product design
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Manufacturing Development: Continue VELOS and PELEUS development to optimize cNeT dose and functionality

Members of the Achilles team will participate in the following upcoming conferences. Additional details will be available in the Events & Presentations section of the Company’s website:

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11th Annual Immuno-Oncology Summit: August 7-9, 2023, Boston, MA
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Advanced Therapies Europe: September 6-7, 2023, Estoril, Portugal
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5th Annual TIL Therapies Summit: October 2-4, 2023, Boston, MA