Transgene has recently announced they will present novel results of two pre-clinical trials evaluating immunotherapies during the next Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), taking place between April 18-22, 2015 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The company will present its results on a new immunotherapy targeting the Mucin1 (MUC1) protein in non-small cell lung cancer administered in combination with chemotherapy. In tumor cells, MUC1 is subjected to several modifications transforming it into a tumor-associated antigen, i.e., a highly immunogenic protein that triggers an immune response.
Transgene researchers managed to express the MUC1 antigen in a non-tumorigenic environment thus triggering both innate and adaptive immune responses against MUC1. While the trial is focused on non-small cell lung cancer, MUC1 TAA is also expressed in several other cancers, including lung, breast, colorectal, kidney and prostate.
Additionally, Transgene will present the results of its candidate TG3003, a humanized monoclonal antibody, targeting a cell-surface receptor – CD115 – present in all myeloid cells (the most abundant nucleated haematopoietic cells in the human body that differentiate into macrophages, dendritic cells and granulocytes). While tumors are usually enriched in M2-type macrophages, which promote tumor growth and impair immune responses, M1-macrophages potentiate anti-tumor immune responses and lead to improved disease outcomes. TG3003 inhibits M2-type macrophages, and promotes anti-tumor immune responses by prompting the formation of both M1-macrophages and dendritic cells. Moreover, TG3003 was also shown to target osteoclasts responsible for metastasis formation in patients with bone cancer.
Transgene will present their latest results in three poster sessions entitled “Immune checkpoint inhibitors enhance benefits of modified vaccinia virus Ankara to improve survival in preclinical models of cancer (Abstract #2497)”; “The MVA viral platform for the treatment of cancer and chronic infectious diseases: Clinical experience from four randomized controlled phase II studies (Abstract #2498)”; and “TG3003, an immunomodulatory anti-CD115 mAb targeting M2-macrophage polarization in the tumor microenvironment (Abstract # 288).”
Abstracts for all communications present at the AACR meeting can be viewed here.
