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Sana Biotechnology to Present Preclinical Data on its Engineered Hypoimmune Allogeneic CAR T Cells at the 2022 American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting

On March 8, 2022 Sana Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ: SANA), a company focused on creating and delivering engineered cells as medicines, reported that preclinical data from its hypoimmune T cell program will be presented at the 2022 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting taking place April 8-13, 2022 in New Orleans, LA (Press release, Sana Biotechnology, MAR 8, 2022, View Source [SID1234609740]).

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Sana’s hypoimmune platform has the potential to enable transplants of allogeneic cells without immunosuppression, including allogeneic CAR T cells. Hypoimmune cells were engineered to eliminate HLA-I, HLA-II, and TCR expression to block activation of T cells and B cells, as well as prevent graft versus host disease, while also overexpressing CD47 to block both natural killer cell and macrophage killing. The preclinical data demonstrate these hypoimmunogenic CAR T cells are able to evade both the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system while retaining their antitumor activity.

Sana is utilizing this hypoimmune platform to develop a portfolio of allogeneic CAR T cell therapies for patients with cancer, starting with CD19-expressing B cell malignancies such as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Sana expects to file investigational new drug applications for multiple product candidates that utilize this platform, starting with SC291 (CD19) in 2022 and SC276 (CD19/CD22) as early as 2023.

Poster details:

Title: Engineered hypoimmune allogeneic CAR T cells as potential off-the-shelf CAR T cell immunotherapies
Session Category: Immunology
Session Title: Preclinical Immunotherapy
Abstract Number: 5598
Full abstracts are available for viewing in the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) Online Itinerary Planner located here, View Source!/10517. The full e-poster will be available Friday, April 8, 2022 at 1:00 p.m. ET and remain available for viewing through Wednesday, July 13, 2022.

Flow Eighteen38 receives €5 million EUR (c.$5.58 million USD) to expand production and biophysical capabilities

On March 8, 2022 Flow Eighteen38, a protein sciences division created to facilitate and accelerate antibody characterization and protein purification projects, reported a €5 million EUR (c.$5.58 million USD) investment into its protein production and biophysical characterization capabilities and services from its parent company, FairJourney Biologics S.A. (FJB), leaders in the discovery and optimization of antibodies (Press release, FairJourney Biologics, MAR 8, 2022, View Source [SID1234609739]).

The investment will be used to develop a dedicated, fit-for-purpose laboratory, designed to host a range of new and bespoke, state-of-the-art equipment to double protein purification capacity. The new facilities will accommodate over 15 high-end Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography systems (ÄKTAs), all individually optimized to scale-up custom production as well as support unique partner requirements and fast track standard productions.

The investment will also streamline Quality Control with the purchase of high throughput, high precision equipment, including the LabChip GX Touch for CE-SDS, the Thermo Scientific Vanquish UHPLC, the FDA-licensed Endosafe nexgen-MCS for endotoxin testing and two BioAccord LC-MS Systems for biopharmaceuticals analysis. Additionally, the funding will drive further recruitment to service the increased demand for production and characterization services, as well as Flow Eighteen38’s cold storage and logistics solutions, and continued supply of quality antibody reagents that comply with new EU recommendations.

António Parada, CEO of FairJourney Biologics commented: "This investment is further commitment to our partners to ensure we remain on the cutting-edge of protein production and biophysical solutions and to continue to deliver quality results our diverse portfolio of partners have come to know and expect."

Teresa Barata, Head of Protein Science Division at Flow Eighteen38 commented: "We are thrilled for this new stage of Flow Eighteen38. The new investment will enable us to continue to support our clients at the various stages of the discovery process and extend it to pre-CMC stages, for faster and successful biotherapeutics development."

The Laurel Amtower Cancer Institute and Neuro-Oncology Center at Sharp HealthCare to Join Innovative Antibody Brain Cancer Drug Trial

On March 8, 2022 Sharp HealthCare, in collaboration with Nascent Biotech, Inc, reported, its participation in a clinical trial for a novel investigational immunotherapy treatment for patients with glioblastoma (GBM), the deadliest form of brain cancer (Press release, Nascent Biotech, MAR 8, 2022, View Source [SID1234609737]).

Pritumumab (PTB) is a unique monoclonal antibody that attacks cancers originating in the cells lining an organ – referred to as epithelial cells. These include cancers of the brain, breast, colon and pancreas, as well as melanoma. Prior Phase I and II clinical trials in Japan focused on the treatment of high-grade gliomas including GBM.

This Phase I clinical trial leverages Sharp HealthCare’s comprehensive cancer program in this collaboration when treating all forms of brain tumors. With more than 23,000 new cases of GBM diagnosed in the U.S. every year, Sharp HealthCare’s cancer expertise and reputation appealed to Nascent Biotech as they chose additional sites.

"The clinical trial is a good fit for Sharp HealthCare, which is devoted to compassionate patient-centered care, creative innovation, and clinical excellence," said Dr. Charles Redfern, medical director of neuro-oncology at Sharp HealthCare’s Laurel Amtower Cancer Institute and Neuro-Oncology Center, "This is an exciting clinical trial with targeted immunotherapy for patients with GBM."

Pritumumab works by targeting cell surface vimentin, a protein expressed on the surface of epithelial cancers. Because vimentin is found in a variety of cancers, the clinical trial at Sharp HealthCare could have implications for more common cancers, such as breast or lung. In fact, the trial will employ a unique Phase I design that can also be used in studies of brain metastases and leptomeningeal cancers arising from breast, lung and other solid tumors.

"There are significant unmet medical needs in a variety of cancers," said Sean Carrick, CEO of Nascent Biotech, makers of the immunotherapy treatment. "Nascent is committed to changing patient expectations and outcomes in one of the world’s most debilitating cancers and Sharp is a valuable partner towards achieving this goal. We’re highly encouraged by the potential of Pritumumab to deliver an innovative, first-in-class treatment option, and we are delighted to be working closely with the Laurel Amtower Cancer Institute and Neuro-Oncology Center at Sharp HealthCare for this study."

Cowen Health Care Conference Presentation, dated March 8, 2022

On March 8, 2022 Molecular Templates Presented the corporate Presentation (Presentation, Molecular Templates, MAR 8, 2022, View Source [SID1234609736]).

Elephas to Show First Data on Breakthrough Oncology Diagnostics Platform at American Association for Cancer Research

On March 8, 2022 Elephas Biosciences Corporation (Elephas), a live tumor imaging company developing novel cancer diagnostic solutions, reported the acceptance of three abstracts by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) (Press release, Elephas Biosciences, MAR 8, 2022, View Source [SID1234609732]). The abstracts detail the technology and potential use cases for its proprietary imaging platform which aims to achieve the most accurate representation of tumor responses to treatment, with a focus on predicting response to immunotherapies.

The abstract acceptance by the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) shows the company’s progress and ongoing innovation in cancer diagnostics. The company’s platform is being developed with the latest advances in cancer biology, multimodal microscopy, and artificial intelligence to provide clinicians and patients with accurate predictions of treatment response. The posters will be presented during the 2022 AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting taking place in New Orleans, Louisiana April 8 – 13, 2022.

"Witnessing firsthand the struggles that close friends and family have had in their battles with cancer drove me to start the company," stated Maneesh Arora, founder and CEO of Elephas. "The emergence of immunotherapies to help activate our own immune systems is fundamentally changing the landscape for cancer patients, but response rates to date have been limited. The Elephas mission is to change the view of cancer and get the right treatment regimens to patients more quickly."

The titles of the abstracts are currently available on the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) website, with full text, including the dates and times of presentations. The titles of the presentations and scheduled presentation times are as follows:

Abstract Title: A live tumor fragment (LTF) platform with real-time imaging for immune response assays.
Session Date and Time: Tuesday Apr 12, 2022 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Location: New Orleans Convention Center, Exhibit Halls D-H, Poster Section 31
Description: We show preliminary data demonstrating that our platform is capable of reading out response to immunotherapy (nivolumab and ipilimumab) in 3D live tumor fragments derived from primary human tumor samples.
Authors: Tomasz Zal, Leung Kau Tang, Laura Hrycyniak, Anura Shreshta, Dinesh Joshi, Pichet Adstamongkonkul, Kelsey Tweed, Wesley A. Cox-Muranami, Sean Caenepeel, Hinco Gierman, Kevin Elicieri, Kristina A. Matkowskyj, Sam J. Lubner, John Rafter, Mike Szulczewski, Maneesh Arora, Jonathan Oliner.

Abstract Title: Tumor/normal and live/dead classification in live tumor fragments using label-free multiphoton microscopy
Session Date and Time: Tuesday Apr 12, 2022 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Location: New Orleans Convention Center, Exhibit Halls D-H, Poster Section 11
Description: We show we can distinguish live vs. dead cells and tumor vs. normal cells using multiphoton microscopy without the addition of exogenous labels.
Authors: Jonathan Ouellette, John Rafter, Kelsey Tweed, Leung Kau Tang, Christina Scribano, Pichet Adstamongkonkul, Mikaela Schultz, Justine Coburn, Maged Aldeeb, Neil Anthony, Christin Johnson, Kevin Elicieri, Jonathan Oliner, Tomasz Zal.

Abstract Title: Dynamic imaging of T cell surveillance in live tumor fragments using camelid nanobodies
Session Date and Time: Sunday Apr 10, 2022 1:30 PM – 5:00 PM
Location: New Orleans Convention Center, Exhibit Halls D-H, Poster Section 39
Description: We show that small fluorescently labeled camelid "nanobodies" can diffuse into cultured 3D live tumor fragments and identify T cells and their movement patterns.
Authors: Leung Kau Tang, Kelsey Tweed, Christina Scribano, David Wahl, Christin Johnson, M. Anna Zal, Jonathan Oliner, Tomasz Zal.

Information about the 2022 AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) conference may be accessed here.