On March 27, 2019 Eureka Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company developing novel T-cell therapies that harness the evolutionary power of the immune system, reported the publication of a proof-of-concept study in Science Translational Medicine entitled "GPRC5D is a target for the immunotherapy of multiple myeloma with rationally designed CAR-T cells (Press release, Eureka Therapeutics, MAR 27, 2019, View Source [SID1234534677])." The study was led by researchers from Eureka, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) and Juno Therapeutics (Juno).

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Antibody-based therapies, including bi-specific antibodies and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies targeting B cell maturation antigen (BCMA) for multiple myeloma, have shown promising clinical results, but relapses associated with low-to-negative expression of BCMA have been reported, necessitating additional targets for multiple myeloma.

The orphan G protein-coupled receptor GPRC5D has been previously identified in bone marrow cells in patients with multiple myeloma. However, the protein expression profile of GPRC5D remained elusive. Through immunohistochemical analyses, the study demonstrated that GPRC5D is expressed on malignant bone marrow plasma cells, while normal tissue expression is limited to the hair follicle, an immune-privileged site.

In 83 evaluated primary myeloma marrow samples, 65% of samples have GPRC5D expression above a 50% antigen expression cutoff on CD138+ cells. More importantly, GPRC5D expression on CD138 multiple myeloma cells was independent of BCMA expression, suggesting GPRC5D as an ideal clinical target.

In collaboration with MSK, Eureka developed antibodies targeting GPRC5D using Eureka’s proprietary E-ALPHA discovery platform. These antibodies, together with antibodies targeting BCMA and another undisclosed multiple myeloma target, were licensed by Eureka and MSK to Juno (now Celgene) in 2016 for use in CARs.

In a head-to-head comparison with BCMA-targeted CARs with an identical backbone, GPRC5-targeted CAR-T cells demonstrated efficient antigen-specific cytotoxicity in vitro, as well as comparable effect in inducing tumor regression and extending survival at different dose levels in vivo. The study further showed that tumor escape can be rescued by GPRC5D-targeted CAR T-cells in a model of BCMA-antigen loss mediated relapse.

"The study confirms GPRC5D as a viable target in multiple myeloma," said Eric Smith, M.D., Ph.D., a medical oncologist and the Director of Clinical Translation within the Cellular Therapeutics Center at MSK. "We look forward to moving this study into the clinic, including in relapsed patients after BCMA-targeted therapy."

"Targeting GPRC5D has the potential to improve the durability of response from current bi-specific and T-cell therapies that target only BCMA," said Dr. Cheng Liu, President and Chief Executive Officer at Eureka Therapeutics. "This study reflects our commitment to increasing the long-term clinical benefit for patients with multiple myeloma and other cancers, and we look forward to leveraging our E-ALPHA and ARTEMIS platforms to develop transformational new T-cell therapies that are potentially safer and more effective."

On March 27, 2019 Elicio reported that it launched with $30 million in funding and an immunotherapy strategy aimed at getting cancer vaccines into the lymph nodes, a location that orchestrates immune responses but has been hard to target directly (Press release, Elicio Therapeutics, MAR 27, 2019, View Source [SID1234534871]).

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Elicio Therapeutics (Cambridge, Mass.) has exclusively licensed the Amphiphile platform from Darrell Irvine at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Irvine’s group figured out in 2014 how to ferry cancer vaccines into lymph nodes by tethering the vaccines to albumin to "hitchhike" on the carrier’s normal transportation route (see "Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Lymph Node").

Irvine’s group noticed that albumin effectively carried dyes and other compounds into the lymph nodes. In preclinical studies, the team showed that by conjugating vaccines to an albumin-binding lipid tail, tumor-targeting antigens and adjuvants elicited strong immune responses and slowed or reduced tumor growth in mice.

Elicio’s lead candidates from the Amphiphile platform will target pancreatic, colorectal and head and neck cancers. CEO Robert Connelly told BioCentury that Elicio is developing cancer vaccines with a range of different types of shared antigens, including viral antigens.

Connelly said the antigens Elicio is using "have only been delivered systemically, not directly to the lymph nodes," which results in weak immune responses and occasional systemic toxicity. "This is why cancer vaccines have been disappointing to date," he added.

Elicio plans to begin a Phase I/II trial in early 2020 of VED-002, a vaccine targeting KRAS mutations, to treat pancreatic cancer. Its second candidate, VED-001, is a vaccine targeting HPV E6 and E7 transforming proteins. It is set to enter the clinic in 2020 as a single agent and in combination with a checkpoint inhibitor for HPV-positive head and neck cancers.

Connelly declined to disclose the company’s investors.

Connelly was previously a venture partner at Flagship Pioneering and has served as CEO of multiple companies, including pulmonary disease company Pulmatrix Inc. (NASDAQ:PULM) from 2007 to 2012 and metabolic dysregulation company Axcella Health Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.) from 2013 to 2018.
Irvine is a professor of materials science and engineering and of biological engineering at MIT.

Targets: E6 transforming protein (Human papillomavirus-16) – HpV16gp1; E7 transforming protein (Human papillomavirus-16) – HpV16gp2; KRAS – K-Ras

On March 27, 2019 IMMUNOPRECISE ANTIBODIES LTD. (the "Company" or "ImmunoPrecise") (TSX VENTURE: IPA) (OTC PINK: IPATF) reported its financial results for Q3 ended January 31, 2019 (Press release, ModiQuest Therapeutics, MAR 27, 2019, View Source [SID1234534957]). The financial statements and related management’s discussion and analysis ("MD&A") can be viewed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

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Financial Highlights:

Revenue. During the three months ended January 31, 2019, the Company increased revenues to $2,695,583 from $1,723,308 in 2018. This represents a 56% increase in revenue and stems from the acquisitions of U-Protein and ModiQuest, the Company’s ability to grow its core business and expand its market share in Europe, and an increase in projects for the B-cell lab.
Gross Margin. During the three months ended January 31, 2019, the Company increased its gross margin to $1,568,055 from $989,203 in 2018. In percentage terms, the Company’s gross margin increased to 58% from 57% in 2018. The higher gross margin in 2019 was mostly attributable to the fact that the Company focused on higher margin projects at its new B-cell lab and introduced additional efficiencies into its operations. The Company anticipates that gross margin on a percentage basis will continue to be over 50% for the balance of fiscal 2019.
Net Loss. The Company recorded a net loss of $1,187,056 during the three months ended January 31, 2019, which is consistent with the net loss of $1,211,591 for three months ended January 31, 2018. $577,720 of the costs incurred during the three months ended January 31, 2019 were one-time costs which are not expected to be incurred again. These one-time costs included costs incurred to improve operational efficiency across all the divisions, to integrate U-Protein and ModiQuest into IPA’s global network, and to continue to establish a global structure for reporting and oversight. In the current period the Company also made investments that would enable its future growth, such as new management hires, more training programs, and additional space
Adjusted EBITDA. For the three and nine months ended January 31, 2019, excluding the one-time costs of $577,720 and $1,251,613, respectively, EBITDA would have been $116,367 and ($301,477), respectively.

Corporate:

On August 20, 2018, the Company announced that Mr. Guy Champagne resigned from his position as a Director of the Company, and joined the Company’s Advisory Board.

On November 21, 2018, the Company announced that Paul Andreola was appointed as a Director of the Company at its annual general meeting ("AGM") held in Vancouver, BC on November 20, 2018. Mr. Andreola has over 20 years of business development and financial markets experience including senior management, marketing, and communications roles for early stage companies. Previously in his career, Mr. Andreola was a licensed investment advisor for over 10 years and has facilitated multiple early stage private and public companies in the resource and technology sectors. Mr. Andreola is currently the CEO and Director of NameSilo Technologies Corp. (CSE: URL) and Ironwood Capital Corp. (TSXV: IRN.P).

On March 27, 2019 Anixa Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANIX), a biotechnology company focused on using the body’s immune system to fight cancer, reported that it will participate in a panel presentation discussing the latest science in immunotherapy at a two day symposium titled, "Frontiers in Cancer Immunotherapy," hosted by the New York Academy of Sciences on May 14–15, 2019 (Press release, Anixa Biosciences, MAR 27, 2019, View Source [SID1234534661]).

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The panel presentation, "Will CAR-T cell Therapies, Bispecific Antibodies or TILs be more Beneficial for Solid Tumors?" will focus on a discussion about immunotherapy’s potential for addressing solid tumors. Additional panel participants include Renier Brentjens, MD, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and Maria Fardis, PhD, MBA, Iovance Biotherapeutics. Other speakers at the conference include James Allison, PhD, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Philip Greenburg, MD, Fred Hutchison Cancer Center and Lisa Butterfield, PhD, The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy.

Dr. Sara Donnelly, Program Manager at the Academy and conference organizer said, "Immuno-oncology promises a revolution in the way we treat cancer. This two-day symposium will convene leading experts in cancer immunotherapy to discuss cutting-edge findings in the broad area of combination therapies, including checkpoint inhibitors and cellular therapies." More information about the meeting, other participants, and registration can be found at: View Source

On March 27, 2019 Bio-Thera Solutions, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a pipeline of innovative oncology therapies and a pipeline of biosimilars, reported the company will present two posters at the 2019 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) ("AACR") Annual Meeting taking place March 29 – April 3, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia (Press release, BioThera Solutions, MAR 27, 2019, View Source [SID1234534678]).

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The first poster, entitled "BAT8001, a potent anti-HER2 antibody drug conjugate with a novel uncleavable linker to reduce toxicity for patients with HER2-positive tumor," will highlight Phase I clinical data demonstrating the safety and efficacy of BAT8001 in HER2-positive cancer patients. An abstract of the presentation will be available on AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) website on the day of the presentation.

Presentation details are as follows:

Session Category: Clinical Trials
Session Title: Phase I Clinical Trials: Part 2
Session Date and Time: Monday, April 1, 2019, 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Location: Georgia World Congress Center, Exhibit Hall B, Poster Section 17
Poster Board Number:
Abstract Number:

10
CT053

The second poster, entitled "Development of a potent Trop-2 antibody-drug conjugate, BAT8003, for the treatment of Trop-2 positive gastric tumors," will present preclinical data that highlight advantages of BAT8003 as a potential treatment for gastric cancer patients. The IND for a Phase I clinical trial evaluating the safety and pharmacokinetics of BAT8003 was approved earlier this year by the China NMPA. Dosing of the first patient in this Phase I clinical trial is expected to occur during April 2019. An abstract of the presentation is currently available on AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) website.

Presentation details are as follows:

Session Category: Experimental and Molecular Therapeutics
Session Title: Targeted Therapies
Session Date and Time: Wednesday Apr 3, 2019 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Location: Georgia World Congress Center, Exhibit Hall B, Poster Section 14
Poster Board Number:

9

Abstract Number:

4821

Copies of both posters will be made available on the Company’s website after they are presented.

About BAT8001

BAT8001 is an investigational HER2-ADC being evaluated in multiple tumor types. HER2 is a naturally occurring receptor that is overexpressed in many types of cancer, including breast cancer and gastric cancer. BAT8001 is being developed for use as a single agent and in combination with other agents for the treatment of multiple cancers. BAT8001 is currently being evaluated as a single agent in a Phase III metastatic breast cancer trial and in combination with an anti-PD1 antibody in gastric cancer. Both clinical studies are being run in China.

About BAT8003

BAT8003 is an investigational Trop2-ADC being evaluated in multiple tumor types. Trop-2 is a naturally occurring receptor that is overexpressed in many types of cancer, including triple negative breast cancer and gastric cancer. BAT8003 utilizes Bio-Thera Solutions’ proprietary linker-payload combination, Batansine. The antibody component of BAT8003 is engineered for site-specific conjugation to allow for better control of the ADC DAR, providing a more homogenous product. The linker is non-cleavable ensuring superior delivery of the payload to the cancer cells and improving the safety profile of the ADC. BAT8003 is being developed for use as a single agent and in combination with other agents for the treatment of Trop2 positive cancers. A Phase I clinical trial evaluating the pharmacodynamics and safety of BAT8003 will begin dosing patients during April 2019.