On November 9, 2016 Puma Biotechnology, Inc. (NYSE: PBYI), a biopharmaceutical company, reported financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016 (Press release, Puma Biotechnology, NOV 9, 2016, View Source [SID1234516704]).

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Unless otherwise stated, all comparisons are for the third quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2016, compared to the third quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2015.

Based on accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (GAAP), Puma reported a net loss applicable to common stock of $65.8 million, or $2.02 per share, for the third quarter of 2016, compared to a net loss of $60.4 million, or $1.87 per share, for the third quarter of 2015. Net loss applicable to common stock for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 was $203.4 million, or $6.26 per share, compared to $177.6 million, or $5.55 per share, for the nine months ended September 30, 2015.

Non-GAAP adjusted net loss was $36.0 million, or $1.11 per share, for the third quarter of 2016, compared to non-GAAP adjusted net loss of $35.5 million, or $1.10 per share, for the third quarter of 2015. Non-GAAP adjusted net loss for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 was $115.4 million, or $3.55 per share, compared to $104.3 million, or $3.26 per share, for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. Non-GAAP adjusted net loss excludes stock-based compensation expense, which represents a significant portion of overall expense and has no impact on the cash position of the Company. For a reconciliation of GAAP net loss to non-GAAP adjusted net loss and GAAP net loss per share to non-GAAP adjusted net loss per share, please see the financial tables at the end of this news release.

Net cash used in operating activities for the third quarter of 2016 was $34.9 million. Net cash used in operating activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 was $100.7 million. At September 30, 2016, Puma had cash and cash equivalents of $52.5 million and marketable securities of $56.4 million, compared to cash and cash equivalents of $31.6 million and marketable securities of $184.3 million at December 31, 2015. The Company’s balance of cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at the end of the quarter does not include the net proceeds of approximately $162 million received from the Company’s public offering in October 2016.

"During the third quarter, we achieved several key milestones, including the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) validation of the Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for neratinib as an extended adjuvant treatment of HER2-positive early stage breast cancer in Europe, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) acceptance of the New Drug Application (NDA) for neratinib as an extended adjuvant treatment for patients with early stage HER2-overexpressed/amplified breast cancer who have received prior adjuvant trastuzumab (Herceptin)-based therapy," said Alan H. Auerbach, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Puma.

"We anticipate a number of additional milestones through the end of 2016 and first half of 2017," Mr. Auerbach added. "These include: (i) reporting additional data in the fourth quarter of 2016 from the Phase II trial of neratinib as an extended adjuvant treatment in HER2-positive early stage breast cancer using loperamide and budesonide prophylaxis; (ii) reporting additional Phase II data in the fourth quarter of 2016 from the FB-7 neoadjuvant HER2-positive breast cancer trial in the subgroup of patients who are MammaPrint High; (iii) reporting data in the fourth quarter of 2016 from the Phase II trial of neratinib plus fulvestrant in patients with HER2 non-amplified breast cancer that has a HER2 mutation; (iv) reporting data in the first half of 2017 from the Phase III trial of neratinib in third-line HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer patients; and (v) reporting data during the first half of 2017 from the Phase II trial of neratinib in HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer patients with brain metastases."

Operating Expenses

Operating expenses were $66.0 million for the third quarter of 2016, compared to $60.7 million for the third quarter of 2015. Operating expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 were $203.7 million, compared to $178.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015.

General and Administrative Expenses:

General and administrative expenses were $14.0 million for the third quarter of 2016, compared to $8.8 million for the third quarter of 2015. General and administrative expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 were $37.3 million, compared to $22.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. The increase of approximately $15.1 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2016 compared to the same period in 2015 resulted primarily from increases of approximately $7.5 million in stock-based compensation, $1.9 million in payroll and related costs, $3.7 million in professional fees and expenses, and $1.6 million in facility and equipment costs. These increases reflect higher legal and compliance expenses, as well as overall corporate growth.

Research and Development Expenses:

Research and development expenses were $52.0 million for the third quarter of 2016, compared to $51.9 million for the third quarter of 2015. Research and development expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 were $166.4 million, compared to $156.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. The increase of approximately $10.4 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2016 compared to the same period in 2015 resulted primarily from increases of approximately $7.2 million in stock-based compensation, $3.7 million for internal clinical development, regulatory affairs and quality assurance and internal chemical manufacturing expenses, and $2.7 million in consultants and contractors related expenses, offset by a $3.3 million decrease in clinical trial expenses

On November 9, 2016 XOMA Corporation (Nasdaq:XOMA), a leader in the discovery and development of therapeutic antibodies, reported recent achievements and financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016 (Press release, Xoma, NOV 9, 2016, View Source [SID1234516790]).

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"In the third quarter, we accelerated activity in our XOMA 358 clinical trials in patients with hypoglycemia due to congenital hyperinsulinism (CHI) or post-bariatric surgery (PBS). In mid-September, we presented promising initial data from the first nine patients in these studies, which clearly demonstrated that XOMA 358 impacts insulin signaling. We also opened our first clinical site in Germany, which is actively enrolling patients age 12 years and older into our CHI study. Additionally, our proposal to UK regulators to initiate a multi-dose Phase 2 clinical study of XOMA 358 in children over the age of two with CHI was accepted in principle. We are pleased with the progress we are making in the XOMA 358 development program and are optimistic this first-in-class allosteric modulating antibody will offer a significant benefit for the treatment of CHI and PBS patients," said John Varian, Chief Executive Officer of XOMA.

Recent Achievements

Announced promising initial Phase 2 proof-of-concept data from the first nine patients enrolled in the Company’s ongoing XOMA 358 studies. This data confirm the novel antibodies’ proof-of-mechanism is impacting insulin signaling in patients with hypoglycemia due to CHI or PBS.
Continued to advance the XOMA 358 clinical program and made significant steps toward generating additional patient data.
Treated 14 additional patients with XOMA 358 since the September data presentation.
Met with the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Authority (MHRA) and proposed a multi-dose Phase 2 clinical study of XOMA 358 in children older than age two diagnosed with hypoglycemia due to CHI. The Agency agreed in principle with the proposal.
Opened the Company’s first clinical site in Germany to conduct a repeat-dose study of XOMA 358 in CHI patients over the age of 12.
Unveiled a novel new IL-2 immuno-oncology antibody program. Preclinical data will be presented on November 12th at The Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) (Free SITC Whitepaper) 31st Annual Meeting. XOMA anticipates out-licensing the asset to help fund its endocrine drug development programs.
Executed a reverse split of XOMA’s common stock to regain compliance with NASDAQ listing requirements.
Third Quarter 2016 Financial Results
XOMA recorded total revenues of $0.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2016, compared to $2.1 million during the third quarter of 2015. The decrease in third quarter 2016 revenues was due primarily to a reduction in revenues from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and Servier. Going forward, revenues are expected to result from potential new strategic partnerships and arrangements or payments under existing contracts.

Research and development (R&D) expenses for the third quarter of 2016 decreased 51 percent to $8.7 million, compared to $17.6 million in the corresponding 2015 period. The decrease was due primarily to a $3.6 million reduction in clinical trial costs, a $2.7 million reduction in salaries and related expenses, a $1.0 million reduction in external manufacturing activities, a $0.5 million reduction in outside consulting fees due to the termination of the Servier Phase 3 program, and a $0.5 million reduction in depreciation and facility expenses due to the sale of our manufacturing facility to Agenus West LLC.

Selling, general and administrative expenses (SG&A) decreased 28 percent to $4.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2016, compared to $5.6 million during the same period in 2015. The decrease was due primarily to reduced consulting services and reduced salary and related personnel costs following the Company’s restructuring activities that were initiated in the third quarter of 2015.

"Our financial results for the quarter reflect the significant progress we have made over the past year to reduce our operating expenses across every sector of the Company. Third quarter R&D expenses were 51 percent lower year-over-year and 37 percent lower compared with the second quarter of 2016. We also reduced our SG&A expenses by 28 percent from a year ago and by 15 percent from the second quarter," said Tom Burns, Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer of XOMA. "In addition, we continued our out-licensing and partnering efforts to monetize our non-core assets, as our deep pipeline of early-stage antibodies is of interest to multiple companies focused on addressing a wide variety of medical conditions. These transactions have been and continue to be an important source of non-dilutive financing for the Company. For example, we expect to earn a $10 million milestone payment within the next few months under one of our existing license or collaboration agreements."

For the third quarter ended September 30, 2016, XOMA had a net loss of $12.5 million, compared to a net loss of $0.5 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2015. The net losses in the three months ended September 30, 2016 and 2015, included a $0.3 million and $24.4 million gain, respectively, in non-cash revaluations of contingent warrant liabilities, resulting primarily from fluctuations in XOMA’s stock price. Excluding those revaluations, the net loss for the three months ended September 30, 2016, was $12.8 million, compared to a net loss of $24.9 million for the same reporting period in 2015.

On September 30, 2016, XOMA had cash and cash equivalents of $20.6 million compared with $65.8 million at December 31, 2015.

The Company expects its available capital will be sufficient to fund operations into the first quarter of 2017. The anticipated milestone, referenced above, is not included in this projection.

On November 9, 2016 Aduro Biotech, Inc. (Nasdaq:ADRO), a biopharmaceutical company with three distinct immunotherapy technologies, reported that Tom Dubensky Jr., Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Aduro, presented today about the company’s personalized LADD technology at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) (Free SITC Whitepaper) distinct session titled New Cancer Immunotherapy Agents in Development being held in conjunction with the SITC (Free SITC Whitepaper) annual meeting (Press release, Aduro BioTech, NOV 9, 2016, View Source;p=RssLanding&cat=news&id=2221061 [SID1234516456]).

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LADD is Aduro’s proprietary platform of live, attenuated double-deleted Listeria monocytogenes strains that have been engineered to express tumor-associated antigens to induce an innate immune response and tumor-specific T cell-mediated immunity. Personalized LADD, or pLADD, is a second generation LADD technology that is being designed for individualized, patient-specific immunotherapy. The pLADD approach leverages the immune activating activity of the Listeria bacterial vector in combination with neoantigens, or the tumor markers specific to an individual’s cancer, which are derived from the patient’s own unique tumor cells. Once administered, pLADD therapies are expected to mobilize the immune system through first an immediate recognition of the presence of Listeria as being foreign and then second a specific and customized immune attack on cells containing the tumor neoantigens presented by pLADD. An Investigational New Drug (IND) application has been accepted, and a Phase 1 trial evaluating the safety and immunogenicity of pLADD in patients with advanced gastro-intestinal cancers is planned.

"There is tremendous excitement in the oncology field to develop personalized therapies as the next new wave in immunotherapy to specifically customize treatment for each patient based on neoantigens that are unique to a patient’s tumor," said Tom Dubensky Jr., Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Aduro. "We are excited about the potential of our pLADD program, which has been shown to induce anti-tumor immune responses specific to tumor neoantigens and correlate with longer survival in preclinical models. Additionally, in these models, we observed a synergistic anti-tumor effect when pLADD was combined with an anti-PD-1 antibody, resulting in a significant reduction in tumor volume and increased survival."

The pLADD technology platform is well-suited to maximize the potential benefit of personalized therapy through the ability to engineer the therapy with multiple tumor-specific neoantigens, as well as to leverage an efficient small-scale manufacturing process in its production.

To create a patient-specific pLADD therapy, a physician begins by removing tumor cells from the patient. These cells are analyzed in order to molecularly characterize (sequence) the tumor, including any mutations that are unique to the patient’s own tumor cells. Predictive algorithms for antigen processing are run to identify pertinent tumor antigens. Aduro then creates a LADD strain that includes the patient-specific neoantigens for administration.

Preclinical Data with pLADD
Preclinical data showed that pLADD induced a robust immune response, including broad innate immune responses involving cytokines, chemokines, natural killer, and gamma delta T cells, as well as antigen-specific adaptive T cell responses (CD8+ and CD4+). In preclinical models, pLADD remodeled the tumor microenvironment, whereby an increase in infiltration of neutrophils, T cells and dendritic cells was observed. The combination of pLADD with an anti-PD-1 led to a sustained immune response and significant prolongation of survival in these models.

Detailed preclinical data will be presented by Aduro scientist Meredith Leong, Ph.D., on Saturday, November 12, 2016 at the SITC (Free SITC Whitepaper) Annual Meeting (Poster #366).

On November 9, 2016 Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:KERX), a biopharmaceutical company focused on bringing innovative medicines to people with renal disease, reported its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016 and provided a corporate update (Press release, Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, NOV 9, 2016, View Source;p=RssLanding&cat=news&id=2220890 [SID1234516568]).

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"Our second contract manufacturer is successfully producing Auryxia," said Greg Madison, president and chief executive officer of Keryx Biopharmaceuticals. "We are ready to promptly make Auryxia available to pharmacies, pending approval of this manufacturer, which has a November 13, 2016 PDUFA date. Since August, we have been working closely with the kidney community to support them through the supply interruption. We are committed to maintaining a consistent supply of Auryxia, and we are working to ensure that the renal care teams will confidently prescribe Auryxia again."

BUSINESS UPDATE

The company reported Auryxia net U.S. product sales for the third quarter of 2016 of $5.1 million compared to $3.2 million in the third quarter of 2015. Third quarter 2016 product sales reflect approximately 9,700 reported prescriptions of Auryxia during the period. In addition, Keryx announced it will change its method of revenue recognition from the sell-through (deferred) method to the pull-through (ex-factory) method beginning in the fourth quarter of 2016.
On August 1, 2016, Keryx announced a temporary interruption in the supply of Auryxia was imminent due to a production-related issue at its existing manufacturer in converting active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) to finished drug product. Keryx is working with its existing manufacturer to resolve the issue and resume production. Keryx filed a post-approval supplement application with the U.S. FDA for approval of a second contract manufacturer to supply finished drug product. The application has a Prescription Drug User Fee Act, or PDUFA, action date of November 13, 2016. The company is prepared to promptly supply Auryxia to pharmacies, pending FDA approval of its second contract manufacturer. In October 2016, Keryx entered into a long-term agreement with its second contract manufacturer for the manufacture of commercial supply of finished drug product.
Keryx announced that it has completed the sNDA seeking an additional indication for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia in adults with stage 3-5 non-dialysis dependent chronic kidney disease (CKD), and is ready to submit the application to the FDA, pending final agreement on its pediatric plan.
Five abstracts related to ferric citrate have been accepted for poster presentation at the upcoming American Society of Nephrology’s (ASN) 2016 Kidney Week taking place November 15 – 20, 2016. Four of the five abstracts describe data from the pivotal Phase 3 trial evaluating ferric citrate for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia in adults with stage 3-5 non-dialysis dependent CKD. The accepted abstracts are available online on the ASN conference website. In addition, the company plans to submit Phase 3 results for publication in a peer reviewed medical journal.
FINANCIAL SECTION

Third Quarter Ended September 30, 2016 Financial Results
"In the third quarter, we focused on rebuilding supply of Auryxia while at the same time continuing to invest appropriately in future growth areas, including pre-launch activities for the potential label expansion of ferric citrate for the treatment of adults with IDA and stage 3-5 NDD-CKD," said Scott Holmes, chief financial officer of Keryx. "As we look ahead, we will be focused on how quickly we can return Auryxia to patients who had previously been prescribed our medicine, and on bringing Auryxia to new patients who could potentially benefit from treatment."

At September 30, 2016, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $132.2 million.

Total revenues for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 were approximately $6.3 million, compared with $4.2 million during the same period in 2015. Total revenues for the third quarter of 2016 consisted of Auryxia net U.S. product sales of $5.1 million, and license revenue of $1.3 million associated with royalties received on ferric citrate net sales from Keryx’s Japanese partner. Beginning in the fourth quarter of 2016, the company will change its revenue recognition policy from the sell-through method based on patient prescription fulfillments to the pull-through or ex-factory method based on sales of Auryxia to wholesalers and pharmacy customers. This decision was made following the company’s ability to reasonably estimate product returns. Under the ex-factory method, revenue will be recognized when wholesalers and direct customers receive orders of Auryxia.

Cost of goods sold for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 was $18.2 million as compared with $3.1 million during the same period in 2015. Cost of goods sold during the third quarter of 2016 included $13.8 million in write-offs of work-in-process inventory that was determined to no longer be suitable for commercial manufacture. Additionally, cost of goods sold during the quarter also included $2.3 million related to manufacturing charges incurred as a result of not fully utilizing planned production at the company’s existing third-party drug product manufacturer.

Research and development expenses for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 decreased by 22 percent to $8.7 million as compared to $11.2 million during the same period in 2015. The decrease was primarily due to a reduction in clinical expenses associated with the company’s completed Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating ferric citrate for the treatment of IDA in adults with stage 3-5 non-dialysis dependent CKD.

Selling, general and administrative expenses for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 were $20.5 million as compared with $20.2 million during the same period in 2015.

Net loss for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016 was $41.7 million, or $0.39 per share, compared to a net loss of $30.7 million, or $0.29 per share, for the comparable quarter in 2015.

On November 9, 2016 ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. (Nasdaq:ZIOP), a biopharmaceutical company focused on new immunotherapies, reported financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016, and provided an update on the Company’s recent activities (Press release, Ziopharm, NOV 9, 2016, View Source [SID1234516793]).

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"ZIOPHARM continues to advance a broad portfolio of immuno-oncology programs, including our gene therapy platform, and our chimeric antigen receptor, T-cell receptor, and natural killer adoptive cell-based therapies," said Laurence Cooper, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of ZIOPHARM Oncology. "These programs ensure that ZIOPHARM participates across the spectrum of cell-based therapies, with technologies spanning non-viral and viral T-cell gene transfer, cytokines, and controlled expression of biologics after infusion. What is particularly exciting about our progress is that most of these technologies will be in clinical testing in 2017, moving us toward realization of these transformative ideas including individualized therapies targeting neoantigens and continued shortening of cell manufacturing to infuse T cells after gene transfer. These ideas will allow us to leapfrog current technologies and address some of the most important challenges in cancer treatment today."

Francois Lebel, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of ZIOPHARM Oncology added: "In the near-term, we look forward to presenting updated results at the Society for Neuro-Oncology Annual Meeting next week from our Phase 1, multi-center study of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex in patients with brain cancer. To date, intracranial administration of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex has demonstrated a favorable safety profile, with a survival benefit compared to historical control that provides a strong rational for moving to a phase 2/3 trial."

Corporate and Program Updates

Gene Therapies

Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex is a gene therapy candidate for the controlled expression of interleukin 12 (IL-12), a critical protein for stimulating an anti-cancer immune response, using the RheoSwitch Therapeutic System (RTS) gene switch. ZIOPHARM is currently enrolling patients in two studies of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex: a multi-center Phase 1 study in patients with recurrent or progressive glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), an aggressive form of brain cancer, and a Phase 1b/2 study for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer following standard chemotherapy.

Updated Clinical Data from Phase 1 Study of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + Veledimex in High-Grade Gliomas to be presented at Society of Neuro-Oncology (SNO) Annual Meeting. ZIOPHARM will present updated data from its Phase 1, multi-center study of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex in patients with recurrent high-grade gliomas at the upcoming 21st Annual SNO Scientific Meeting being held November 17-20, 2016 in Scottsdale, Arizona. Subjects with relapsed high-grade gliomas undergoing re-resection were intra-tumorally injected once with Ad-RTS-hIL-12 followed by oral doses of veledimex to activate production (transcription) of IL-12. The Company previously showed that the measurement of veledimex in serum and in the brain tumor correlates with production of IL-12 and activation of IFN-gamma, demonstrating not only that this oral drug can be used to start and stop cytokine production, but the generation of IL-12 is proportional to the dosing of veledimex. These data will be updated for recipients taking veledimex at 20 mg/day, 30 mg/day and 40 mg/day. The Company previously reported 6-month overall survival in the study at 100%. Twelve month survival data will be reported at SNO.

The presentation, entitled "Phase 1 study of intra-tumoral viral delivery of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + oral veledimex is well tolerated and suggests survival benefit in recurrent high grade glioma" will be presented on Friday, November 18, 2016. The Company will host a conference call to discuss these data on Thursday, November 17, 2016 at 8:00 am ET.

Upcoming Pre-Clinical Data of Ad-RTS-mIL-12 + Veledimex as Therapy for Pediatric Glioma to be presented at Society of Neuro-Oncology Annual Meeting. ZIOPHARM will present data on the ability of the RTS gene switch to control mouse IL-12 production to treat glioma in the pontine region. These data are based on a single injection of Ad-RTS-mIL-12 and oral administration of veledimex and serve as a basis to advance our viral therapy in 2017 for the investigational treatment of pediatric brain tumors, including diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma.

Presented Data Demonstrating Activation of Anti-Tumor Immune Response Using Ad-RTS-hIL-12 in Patients with Advanced Breast Cancer. In October, ZIOPHARM announced the presentation of preliminary data from the Company’s Phase 1b/2 study of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex following standard chemotherapy for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) (Free ESMO Whitepaper) 2016 Congress in Copenhagen, Denmark. Results show that Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + seven days of veledimex consistently elicited production of IL-12 which in turn produced IFN-gamma. It was notable that the intra-tumoral influx of CD8+ T cells and IFN-gamma were present six weeks after completion of veledimex consistent with the ability of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 to favorably impact the tumor environment over the long term. In two patients, Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex provided a meaningful chemotherapy holiday, with durable responses for 18 and 35 weeks.
Adoptive Cell Therapies

ZIOPHARM is developing various immuno-oncology programs, including chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T), T-cell receptor (TCR), T cell (TCR-T), and natural killer (NK) adoptive cell-based therapies. These programs are being advanced in collaboration with Intrexon Corporation (NYSE: XON), MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Merck Serono (CAR-T only).

Results from Four Studies of Adoptive Cell-based Therapeutic Programs to be Presented at the 2016 American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) Annual Meeting. In November, ZIOPHARM announced that four abstracts highlighting data from the Company’s adoptive cell-based therapeutic programs have been accepted for presentation at the 58th American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) Annual Meeting and Exposition. The meeting will be held December 3-6, 2016 in San Diego. The research, conducted at the MD Anderson Cancer Center and Intrexon, demonstrates, among other results, that T cells can be quickly produced with the Sleeping Beauty system and that this non-viral approach to gene therapy can be harnessed to generate CAR and TCR expressing effector cells.

Announced Plans for Phase I Clinical Trial with CD33 CAR-T Cell Therapy; Supporting Preclinical Results to be Presented at ASH (Free ASH Whitepaper) 58th Annual Meeting & Exposition. In July, following a review by the Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee, ZIOPHARM announced plans for a Phase I adoptive cellular therapy clinical trial utilizing autologous T cells transduced with lentivirus to express a CD33-specific CAR in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Preclinical studies, including in vitro data, demonstrated that lentiviral-transduced CAR-T cells targeting CD33 exhibited specific killing activity for CD33+ AML cells and a proof-of-concept study utilizing an in vivo mouse model for AML, showed that these CAR-T cells were able to eliminate disease and significantly enhance survival as compared to control groups. These positive preclinical results indicate biological activity and are suggestive of potential therapeutic effect for the treatment of AML. The Company recently announced that associated data will be presented at the 58th ASH (Free ASH Whitepaper) Annual Meeting.

Announced Publication of Data from First-In-Human Trials using Non-Viral Sleeping Beauty System to Express CD19-Specific CAR in T cells in Journal of Clinical Investigation. In August, ZIOPHARM announced the publication of data highlighting the benefits of using the non-viral Sleeping Beauty (SB) system to genetically modify T cells to express a CAR for use against CD19-expressing leukemias and lymphomas. The article, titled "Phase I trials using Sleeping Beauty to generate CD19-specific CAR T cells," was published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation (doi:10.1172/JCI86721), and is available online here.

The paper describes results for 26 patients with multiply relapsed B-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL, n=17) or B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma, (NHL, n=9) who were enrolled in two investigator-initiated clinical trials at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center infused with Sleeping Beauty-modified T cells after autologous (n=7) or allogeneic (n=19) hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT). Although the primary objective of these trials was not to establish efficacy, the recipients’ outcomes are encouraging, with apparent doubling of survivals compared to historical controls which is attributed to the persistence of the infused T cells. Additionally, by infusing a CD19-specific CAR-T to target minimal residual disease after autologous and allogeneic HSCT, the approach may improve tolerability by avoiding cytokine release syndrome.
Milestones

Intra-tumoral IL-12 RheoSwitch programs:
Clinical data from Phase 1 of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex for GBM to be presented at SNO 2016
Initiate Phase 2/3 clinical trial for GBM in 2017
Clinical update presented at the 2016 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Annual Meeting for Phase 1 study of GBM
Pre-clinical data presented at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) (Free ASGCT Whitepaper) 2016 for combining with immune checkpoint inhibitor
Initiate combination study of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex with checkpoint inhibitor therapy (PD-1) during the first half of 2017
Pre-clinical data for Ad-RTS-mIL-12 + veledimex to support pediatric brain tumors to be presented at SNO 2016
Initiate Phase 1 study in the treatment of brain tumors in children during the first half of 2017
Update on Phase 1/2 study in Breast Cancer with standard of care presented at the 2016 ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) meeting
Clinical update presented at the 2016 ESMO (Free ESMO Whitepaper) meeting for Phase 1/2 Breast Cancer study
CAR-T programs:
Continuation of CD19 CAR+ T clinical study in 2016
Initiate a CD33 specific CAR+ T clinical study for relapsed or refractory AML in the first half of 2017
Preclinical data on CD33 to be presented at ASH (Free ASH Whitepaper) 2016
Preclinical data presented at ASGCT (Free ASGCT Whitepaper) 2016 and ASH (Free ASH Whitepaper) 2016 for shortening the time of ex vivo manufacture of SB-modified T cells
Initiate CAR+ T-cell preclinical studies for other hematological malignancies and solid tumors in 2016
TCR-T programs
Initiate TCR-modified T-cell preclinical studies in 2016
Preclinical data to be presented at ASH (Free ASH Whitepaper) 2016
NK cell programs
Initiate a Phase 1 study of off-the-shelf NK cells for AML in 2017
GvHD programs
Initiate preclinical studies in 2016
SNO 21st Annual Scientific Meeting Conference Call and Slide Webcast

ZIOPHARM will host a conference call and webcast slide presentation Thursday, November 17, 2016, at 8:00 am ET to discuss updated data from the Company’s Phase 1 study of Ad-RTS-hIL-12 + veledimex in high-grade glioma. The call can be accessed by dialing (844) 309-0618 (U.S. and Canada) or (661) 378-9465 (international). The passcode for the conference call is 11110235. To access the slides and live audio webcast, or the subsequent archived recording, visit the "Investors & Media" section of the ZIOPHARM website at www.ziopharm.com. The webcast will be recorded and available for replay on the Company’s website for two (2) weeks.

Third-Quarter 2016 Financial Results

Net loss applicable to common shareholders for the third quarter of 2016 was $14.5 million, or $(0.11) per share, compared to a net loss of $18.2 million, or $(0.14) per share, for the third quarter of 2015. The decrease in net loss for the three months ended September 30, 2016 is primarily due to a one-time charge of $10.0 million for in process research and development with Intrexon for GvHD programs incurred in September 2015. This decrease was offset by a $2.0 million increase in expenses related to the gene therapy and cell therapy programs, decreased revenue of $0.3 million, increased general and administrative costs of $0.4 million and income attributable to preferred stockholders of $3.6 million.

Research and development expenses were $9.0 million for the third quarter of 2016 compared to $17.0 million for the third quarter of 2015. The decrease in research and development expenses for the three months ended September 30, 2016 is primarily due to a one-time charge of $10.0 million for in process research and development with Intrexon for GvHD programs incurred in September 2015. This decrease was offset by a $2.0 million increase in expenses related to the gene therapy and cell therapy programs.

General and administrative expenses were $3.5 million for the third quarter of 2016 compared to $3.1 million for the third quarter of 2015. The increase for the three months ended September 30, 2016 was primarily due to increased employee related costs.
The Company ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of approximately $94.7 million, which the Company believes will be sufficient to fund its currently planned activities into the fourth quarter of 2017.