On June 10, 2021 aTyr Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LIFE), a biotherapeutics company engaged in the discovery and development of innovative medicines based on novel biological pathways, reported the presentation of a poster at the Antibody Engineering & Therapeutics Europe Virtual conference which was held June 8 – 10, 2021 (Press release, aTyr Pharma, JUN 10, 2021, View Source [SID1234583906]). The abstract and poster are available on the conference website.
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The poster presents preclinical findings demonstrating in vitro and in vivo proof-of-concept that the anti-Neuropilin-2 (NRP2) antibody, aNRP2-14, is a high affinity, selective blocker of the Semaphorin 3F/NRP2 interaction. Class 3 Semaphorins are an important set of NRP2 ligands, with recent data implicating their role in sustaining chronic inflammation.
Details of the abstract and poster presentation are as follows:
Title: Engineering an anti-Neuropilin-2 (NRP2) antibody that selectively blocks NRP2 interactions with Semaphorin and Plexin
Authors: Kaitlyn Rauch, Luke Burman, Yanyan Geng, Liting Zhai, Yeeting E. Chong, Ann Menefee, Kristina Hamel, Zhiwen Xu, Nathaniel Bloom, Lauren Guy, Matt Seikkula, Christoph Burkart, Leslie A. Nangle. aTyr Pharma, San Diego, CA, Pangu Biopharma, Hong Kong.
Date: June 8 – 10, 2021
The poster is also available on the aTyr website.
"We are very excited to present these findings for aNRP2-14, which demonstrate the cutting-edge, in-house antibody engineering capabilities that the aTyr team has developed around creating highly specific, fully humanized, monoclonal antibodies targeting NRP2 and the different domains of the receptor," said Leslie Nangle, Ph.D., Vice President, Research at aTyr. "NRP2 interacts with several different protein ligands individually through these distinct domains to mediate signaling through diverse biological pathways associated with different disease states, and we have created a panel of antibodies targeting these distinct domains. While our lead anti-NRP2 antibody, ATYR2810, blocks the interaction with the VEGF ligand and is in preclinical development for cancer, aNRP2-14 targets the interaction between NRP2 and Sema3F/Plexin, a distinct signaling pathway modulated by this receptor. The data presented in this poster suggest that the blocking ability of aNRP2-14 could have potential utility as a therapeutic modality for targeting immune-mediated diseases where Sema3F/VEGF signaling is implicated and presents an additional pipeline opportunity for aTyr to explore."
About NRP2
Neuropilin-2 (NRP2) is a cell surface receptor that plays a key role in lymphatic development and in regulating inflammatory responses. In many forms of cancer, high NRP2 expression is associated with worse outcomes. NRP2 can interact with multiple ligands and co-receptors through distinct domains to influence their functional roles, making it a potential drug target with multiple distinct therapeutic applications. NRP2 interacts with type 3 semaphorins and plexins to impact inflammation and with forms of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and their receptors, to impact lymphangiogenesis. In addition, NRP2 modulates interactions between CCL21 and CCR7 potentially impacting homing of dendritic cells to lymphoid organs. aTyr is currently investigating NRP2 receptor biology, both internally and in collaboration with key academic thought leaders, as a novel target for new product candidates for a variety of diseases, including cancer and inflammation.