- ACE1702 demonstrates enhanced cytotoxicity against multiple HER2-expressing cell lines and activity under immunosuppressive conditions
- ACE1702 maintains activity following cryopreservation
- oNK cell expression profiling reveals high levels of activating receptors and low levels of inhibitory receptors
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. and TAIPEI, Taiwan, Nov. 09, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Acepodia, a biotechnology company developing novel off-the-shelf cell therapies against solid tumor and hematologic cancers, will present preclinical data supporting the potential of its lead candidate ACE1702, an off-the-shelf oNK cell therapy, at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) 35th Anniversary Annual Meeting being held virtually from November 9-14, 2020. The company will also participate in live virtual Q&A sessions regarding its poster presentation.
Details are as follows:
Title: A potent and off-the-shelf oNK cell therapy product targets HER2+ cancer cells and resists suppressive tumor microenvironment
Presenter: Howard Li, Ph.D., Preclinical Research Scientist
Poster/Abstract Number: 772
Presentation highlights:
- ACE1702 displayed higher cytotoxicity against multiple HER2-expressing cancer cell lines compared to the leading anti-HER2 antibody, trastuzumab, and its derived antibody-drug conjugate, trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1).
- ACE1702 retained cytotoxic activity under hypoxic and metabolic conditions similar to the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment.
- An in vivo mouse study found that ACE1702 retained anti-tumor activity following cryopreservation.
- Expression profiling of Acepodia’s proprietary off-the-shelf NK (oNK) cell line, used to develop ACE1702, reveals high levels of activating receptors and low levels of inhibitory receptors.
- Trastuzumab, the anti-HER2 antibody used to arm ACE1702, is conjugated primarily to activating NK cell receptors.
Cumulatively the data presented provide strong evidence of ACE1702’s clinical potential and supports the ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating ACE1702 for the treatment of HER2-expressing solid tumors. Additional information on the ACE1702 Phase 1 clinical trial is available at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04319757)
Q&A sessions:
Session 1: Thursday, November 12, 2020 at 3:50 – 4:20 p.m. EST
Session 2: Saturday, November 14, 2020 at 1:30 – 2:00 p.m. EST.
“The data presented in the study strongly support the clinical potential of ACE1702 to combat HER2-expressing solid tumors, an area with significant unmet need, and highlights the power of our platform,” said Sonny Hsiao, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Acepodia. “The combination of our flexible ACC platform and potent off-the-shelf cancer-killing cell lines has the potential to be the foundation for a new class of cell therapies that are effective at combating solid tumors and widely accessible to patients. We look forward to building on these results in our ongoing Phase 1 trial and hope to deliver ACE1702 as the first of a new generation of cell therapies to patients.”
The poster can be accessed on the SITC website.
About ACE1702
ACE1702 is Acepodia’s lead clinical product candidate developed from the company’s natural killer (oNK) cell line and proprietary Antibody-Cell Conjugation (ACC) platform. It targets human HER2-expressing solid tumors using anti-HER2 antibody-conjugated oNK cells. In preclinical studies, ACE1702 demonstrated a favorable safety profile in GLP toxicology studies and enhanced tumor-directed cytotoxicity against high to low HER2-expressing human cancer cells both in vitro and in vivo. ACE1702 is currently being studied in a Phase 1 clinical trial in the United States.
About Acepodia
Acepodia is a privately held U.S.-Taiwan biotechnology company reshaping the field of cell therapies through a flexible and integrated approach to biologic design with a primary focus on oncology. The company’s platform is rooted in its proprietary off-the-shelf natural killer (oNK) cell line that has been selected for its potent anti-tumor activity. Acepodia’s drug development platform is designed to augment oNK cells’ tumor affinity through both chimeric antigen receptor technology as well as its unique ACC (Antibody-Cell Conjugation) technology that links tumor-targeting antibodies to the surface proteins of oNK cells.
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