On April 29, 2019 Forbius, a clinical-stage company that develops novel biologics for the treatment of cancer and fibrosis, announced that it has received a no objection letter from Health Canada for its clinical trial application (CTA) to conduct a Phase 1 trial in solid tumors with immuno-oncology candidate AVID200, a rationally designed and highly potent inhibitor of TGF-beta 1 & 3 (Press release, Forbius, APR 29, 2019, View Source [SID1234535642]).

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AVID200-03 (NCT03834662) is a Phase I, open label, dose-escalation trial to establish the recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D) of AVID200 in patients with advanced or metastatic malignancies. The trial is currently enrolling patients at centers in the U.S. and will now be expanded to additional clinical sites in Canada to recruit a total of up to 36 patients.

TGF-beta 1 & 3 are the main oncogenic TGF-beta isoforms expressed by many solid tumors and represent promising immuno-oncology targets. These TGF-beta isoforms are implicated in T-cell suppression, fibrosis in the tumor microenvironment, and resistance to immunotherapeutics such as nivolumab (Opdivo) and pembrolizumab (Keytruda) (Chakravarthy et al., Nature Comm., 2018; Tauriello et al., Nature, 2018; Mariathasan et al., Nature, 2018).

About AVID200 and the AVID200-03 Trial
AVID200 is an isoform-selective and highly potent inhibitor of TGF-beta 1 & 3 undergoing Phase 1 clinical testing in solid tumors and fibrotic diseases. TGF-beta 1 & 3 are the principal disease-driving isoforms, while TGF-beta 2 is responsible for normal cardiac function and hematopoiesis.

AVID200’s selectivity for TGF-beta 1 & 3 was designed to achieve optimal efficacy while circumventing cardiac and other safety issues that have limited the applicability of older-generation, non-selective TGF-beta inhibitors. Therefore, AVID200 is positioned to be an effective and well-tolerated therapeutic in a variety of clinical settings, including in combination with anti-PD-(L)1 therapy.

AVID200-03 (NCT03834662) is an open label, multicenter, dose-escalation study to evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and antitumor effects of AVID200 in patients with advanced or metastatic solid tumor malignancies.

On April 29, 2019 Teneobio, Inc. and its affiliate TeneoOne, Inc. reported that their investigational new drug application (IND) for TNB-383B, a bispecific T-cell engaging antibody for the treatment of multiple myeloma, was cleared for the initiation of Phase I clinical studies by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on April 24th, 2019 (Press release, TeneoBio, APR 29, 2019, View Source [SID1234535622]). The ongoing development of TNB-383B is being pursued in collaboration with AbbVie, Inc.

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TNB-383B is a fully human bispecific antibody with two binding moieties for B-Cell Maturation Antigen (BCMA) on one arm and a unique anti-CD3 on the other. In preclinical studies, TNB-383B induced T-cell dependent killing of myeloma cells (which express BCMA) but with reduced cytokine secretion, a feature that could limit immune mediated toxicities while retaining cytotoxic activity.

Roland Buelow, CEO of Teneobio, Inc. added "We are looking forward to starting clinical studies with TNB-383B. We believe that Teneobio’s differentiated anti-BCMAxCD3 (TNB-383B), which incorporates a unique T-cell activation anti-CD3, will provide a better therapeutic window for the treatment of multiple myeloma than current BCMA-targeting bispecific antibodies in the clinic. Our T-cell redirecting anti-CD3 platform is also the foundation for additional therapeutics that we are rapidly advancing in our pipeline. These include TNB-486 (anti-CD19xCD3) and TNB-585 (anti-PSMAxCD3) for the treatments of lymphoma and prostate cancer, respectively. We look forward to filing INDs on these additional programs in H2 of 2020."

On April 29, 2019 Precision BioSciences, a genome editing company dedicated to improving life (Nasdaq: DTIL) ("Precision") through the application of its proprietary ARCUS genome editing platform, reported financial and corporate results for the first quarter 2019 and provided an overview of recent accomplishments and upcoming events (Press release, Precision Biosciences, APR 29, 2019, View Source [SID1234535619]).

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Key Highlights and Recent Developments

Executed private financing and initial public offering (IPO) on Nasdaq for combined net proceeds to Precision of over $170 million

Bolstered Board of Directors with addition of Raymond Schinazi, PhD

Initiated patient dosing for Phase 1/2a clinical trial of off-the-shelf CAR T cell therapy

"The first quarter was truly transformative for Precision BioSciences, as we completed our successful initial public offering, further strengthening our ability to deliver on the promise of ARCUS genome editing," said Matt Kane, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder. "Since the completion of our IPO, we have transitioned to a clinical stage company with the dosing of the first patient in a Phase 1/2a clinical trial of our lead allogeneic CAR T therapy, targeting CD19 for the treatment of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and acute lymphoblastic leukemia. We believe our team and technology have the potential to bring meaningful benefits to the lives of many."

On March 27th, the Company priced the initial public offering of its common stock, which was underwritten by J.P Morgan, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Jefferies and Barclays who served as joint book-running managers for the offering. The IPO closed on April 1, 2019 with gross proceeds to Precision of $145.3 million before underwriting discounts, commissions and offering costs. Precision issued 9,085,000 shares of common stock, inclusive of the underwriters’ overallotment option, at an offering price of $16.00 per share. The IPO was preceded by a private convertible financing of approximately $40 million. Following the closing of the IPO, Precision had approximately 50.4 million shares of common stock outstanding, including shares of preferred stock and convertible promissory notes that converted into common stock.

Earlier in the quarter, on March 14th, the Company appointed Raymond Schinazi, PhD, Hon DSc to its board of directors. Dr. Schinazi is the Frances Winship Walters Professor of Pediatrics and director of the Laboratory of Biochemical Pharmacology at Emory University. A world leader in nucleoside chemistry, he is best known for his pioneering work on HIV, HBV, and HCV drugs d4T (stavudine, Zerit), 3TC (lamivudine, Epivir), FTC (emtricitabine, Emtriva), LdT (telbivudine, Tyzeka), and sofosbuvir (Sovaldi), which are all approved by the US FDA and the EMEA. More than 94% of HIV-infected individuals in the US on combination therapy take at least one of the drugs he invented, and he has founded or co-founded several pharmaceutical companies, including Triangle Pharmaceuticals, Idenix Pharmaceuticals, and Pharmasset, Inc.

Recently, on April 17th, Precision initiated patient dosing in the Phase 1/2a clinical trial of an allogeneic CAR T cell therapy program, PBCAR0191, which is being evaluated in adult patients with relapsed or refractory (R/R) non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) or R/R B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) as an off-the-shelf CAR T cell therapy. Precision believes this is the first U.S.-based clinical trial to

evaluate an allogeneic CAR T cell therapy for NHL. PBCAR0191 is made from donor-derived T cells that are modified using Precision’s ARCUS genome editing technology. These edits are designed to generate CAR T cells that specifically recognize CD19, an important target in several B-cell cancers, and to prevent graft-versus-host disease, a significant complication associated with existing donor-derived cell-based therapies.

Upcoming Events

22nd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT) (Free ASGCT Whitepaper), April 29 – May 2, 2019

Jefferies U.S. Healthcare Conference, June 4 – 7, 2019

Goldman Sachs 40th Annual Global Healthcare Conference, June 11 – 13, 2019

Raymond James Life Sciences & MedTech Conference, Jun 18 – 19, 2019

First Quarter 2019 Financial Results

Revenues: Total revenues for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 were $5.5 million, compared to $1.5 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2018. This increase was primarily related to research funding from our joint development collaboration partners.

Research and Development Expenses: Research and development expenses were $19.9 million for the first quarter of 2019, as compared to $8.1 million for the same period in 2018. This increase of $11.8 million was primarily due to increases in direct research and development expenses including contract manufacturing costs, as well as an increase in personnel costs and expenses to support our technology platform development and manufacturing capabilities.

General and Administrative Expenses: General and administrative expenses were $5.0 million for the first quarter of 2019, as compared to $2.6 million for the same period in 2018. The increase of $2.4 million was primarily due to additional personnel and facility costs associated with our growing infrastructure needs.

Net Loss: Net loss was $31.8 million, or $1.99 per share, for the first quarter of 2019, compared to a net loss of $9.0 million, or $0.57 per share, for the same period in 2018.

Cash and Cash Equivalents: As of March 31, 2019, Precision had approximately $116.5 million in cash and cash equivalents, including proceeds of approximately $40 million from a private convertible financing and excluding the net proceeds of $130.9 million from Precision’s IPO. Precision expects that existing cash and cash equivalents, together with the net proceeds from the IPO, will be sufficient to fund its operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements through 2020.

On April 29, 2019 Cassava Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: SAVA), a biopharmaceutical company, reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2019 (Press release, Pain Therapeutics, APR 29, 2019, View Source [SID1234535562]). . Net loss was $1.4 million, or $0.08 per share . This compared to a net loss of $2.2 million, or $0.33 per share, for the same period in the prior year. Cash and cash equivalents were $19.1 million as of March 31, 2019. The Company has no debt. Cassava Sciences utilized $0.7 million of cash during the first quarter of 2019 and expects cash use to be $5.0 – $6.0 million for full year 2019.

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"As we enter 2019, our financial expectations reflect a thoughtful balance between maintaining fiscal discipline and advancing our series of product candidates aimed at Alzheimer’s disease", said Remi Barbier, President & CEO. "One thing that won’t change is our focus on developing potential breakthrough innovations and an unwavering dedication to improve people’s lives. This emphasis has characterized our history and remains core to our strategy for 2019 and beyond."

Cassava Sciences is conducting a Phase 2 clinical program with its investigational drug, PTI-125, in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. PTI-125 is designed to exert anti-neuroinflammatory effects and to restore the function of three key receptors in the brain. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is providing substantial scientific and financial support for the Company’s clinical program.

Cassava Sciences expects to announce results of its Phase 2a study in the second half of 2019, after study participants complete drug treatment and their data are analyzed.

Financial Highlights for First Quarter 2019

At March 31, 2019, cash and cash equivalents were $19.1 million, compared to $19.8 million at December 31, 2018. The company has no debt. Net cash utilized during the first quarter 2019 was $0.7 million.
Net loss was $1.4 million compared to $2.2 million for the same period in the prior year, representing a 37% decrease. Net loss per share was $0.08 compared to $0.33 for the same period in the prior year.
We received research grant funding reimbursements of $0.8 million from NIH and recorded this as a reduction in research and development expenses ("R&D"). This compared to $0.4 million of NIH grant receipts received for the same period in the prior year.
R&D expenses were $0.6 million. This compared to $1.1 million for the same period in the prior year, representing a 46% decrease. The decrease was due primarily to the increase in NIH grant funding in 2019 compared to the prior year combined with a decrease in non-cash stock-based compensation expense. R&D expenses included non-cash stock related compensation costs of $0.1 million compared to $0.4 million for same period in the prior year.
General and administrative ("G&A") expenses were $0.9 million. This compared to $1.1 million for the same period in the prior year, representing a 20% decrease. G&A expenses included non-cash stock-based compensation costs of $0.2 million compared to $0.5 million for the same period in the prior year.
Our Scientific Approach
The target of PTI-125 is an altered form of filamin A (FLNA). FLNA is a scaffolding protein found throughout the body. The function of a scaffolding protein is to bring multiple proteins together and to ensure they interact properly. However, an altered and highly toxic form of FLNA is found in the Alzheimer’s brain. Altered FLNA disrupts the normal function of neurons, leading to neurodegeneration and brain inflammation. Our investigational drug candidate, PTI-125, is designed to restore the normal shape & function of FLNA in the brain. This drug effect exerts powerful anti-neuroinflammatory effects and improves the function of multiple brain receptors.

In animal models of disease, treatment with PTI-125 resulted in dramatic improvements in brain health, such as improved learning and memory; improved insulin receptor signaling; and significant reductions in levels of inflammatory cytokines in the brain.

We are also developing a biomarker/diagnostic to detect Alzheimer’s disease with a simple blood test. This program, called PTI-125Dx, also receives scientific and financial support from NIH.

The underlying science for our programs in neurodegeneration is published in several prestigious peer-reviewed technical journals, including Journal of Neuroscience, Neurobiology of Aging, and Journal of Biological Chemistry. As previously announced, NIH awarded us two research grants in 2018 following an in-depth, confidential review of our science and technology. These two NIH grants represent up to $6.7 million of non-dilutive financing.

About Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disorder that destroys memory and thinking skills. Eventually, a person with Alzheimer’s disease may be unable to carry out even simple tasks. Currently, there are no drug therapies to halt Alzheimer’s disease, much less reverse its course.
An estimated 5.8 million Americans of all ages are living with Alzheimer’s disease in 2019.

On April 29, 2019 G1 Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: GTHX), a clinical-stage oncology company, reported a regulatory update on trilaciclib, a first-in-class myelopreservation agent designed to protect the bone marrow from damage by chemotherapy and improve patient outcomes (Press release, G1 Therapeutics, APR 29, 2019, View Source [SID1234535553]).

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Based on written feedback from its end-of-Phase 2 meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and discussions with European regulatory authorities, the company plans to submit marketing applications in the U.S. and Europe for trilaciclib for myelopreservation in small cell lung cancer (SCLC). These submissions will be based on currently available data from three randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled SCLC clinical trials, as well as safety data collected across all completed and ongoing clinical trials.

"We are pleased with the feedback from our recent meetings with regulatory authorities. We look forward to continuing a collaborative dialogue regarding the marketing applications, as well as discussing further clinical development of trilaciclib," said Raj Malik, M.D., Chief Medical Officer. "We believe trilaciclib represents an important advance in the care of SCLC patients. We will also move forward with a robust development program to evaluate trilaciclib in multiple tumor types and chemotherapy regimens."

G1 will request a pre-New Drug Application (NDA) meeting with the FDA and anticipates it will be scheduled later this year. The company will provide further details regarding the NDA submission and timeline following that meeting. The company plans to submit a Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) subsequent to an NDA filing.

Chemotherapy is an effective and important weapon against cancer. However, chemotherapy does not differentiate between healthy cells and cancer cells and kills both, including important stem cells in the bone marrow that produce white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets. This chemotherapy-induced bone marrow damage is known as myelosuppression. When white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets become depleted, chemotherapy patients are at increased risk of infection, experience anemia and fatigue, and are at increased risk of bleeding. Myelosuppression often requires the administration of rescue interventions such as growth factors and blood or platelet transfusions, and may also result in chemotherapy dose delays and reductions.

"In clinical trials, trilaciclib demonstrated the ability to protect bone marrow from chemotherapy damage and meaningfully reduced the need for supportive care interventions, such as G-CSF and transfusions," said Jared Weiss, M.D., Associate Professor, University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, and trilaciclib clinical trial investigator. "By providing a proactive approach to reduce myelosuppression, trilaciclib improves the patient experience during chemotherapy treatment, reducing side effects and the need for associated interventions commonly given to treat them."

About Trilaciclib

Trilaciclib is a first-in-class myelopreservation agent designed to protect the bone marrow from damage by chemotherapy and improve patient outcomes. Trilaciclib is being evaluated in four randomized Phase 2 clinical trials; G1 reported positive results from all these trials in 2018.