On April 13, 2022 Portage Biotech Inc., (NASDAQ: PRTG) ("Portage" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company developing therapies to improve patient lives and increase survival by avoiding and overcoming cancer treatment resistance, reported that data being presented in collaboration with Stimunity during the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) 2022 Annual Meeting taking place April 8-13 in New Orleans, Louisiana (Press release, Portage Biotech, APR 13, 2022, View Source [SID1234612133]).

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Preclinical data shows that PORT-5 (STI-001), a stimulator of interferon genes (STING) agonist, cyclic guanosine monophosphate–adenosine monophosphate (cGAMP) packaged in a virus-like particle (VLP) developed with Stimunity, can be delivered systemically and achieve potent activation of the STING pathway preferentially in dendritic cells. The data will be presented in a late-breaking research session at the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) meeting on Wednesday, April 13.

"The promising results showcased in this presentation suggest that we are on the verge of developing a novel approach that could elevate the potential of STING-based therapies," said Dr. Ian Walters, chief executive officer of Portage Biotech. "The data shows that one or more targeted immunotherapy agents could be packaged within a virus-like particle to increase potency, while enabling a selective immune activation. We are glad to see these data showcased at an AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) late-breaking session and look forward to working with our colleagues at Stimunity to further develop STING agonist treatments."

The STING pathway is a well-recognized immune-boosting pathway that primes an anti-tumor T cell response and has long been an area of interest in cancer treatment, but limitations of small molecule therapies have stymied STING-activating therapies in clinical trials, due to lack of ability to target specific dendritic cells which leads to varied effects in different cells and an inefficient T cell response. Novel approaches are needed to overcome unwanted side effects associated with activation of this pathway in humans. The promising results from Portage and Stimunity show that PORT-5 (STI-001) can not only target specific dendritic cells but can be customized and targeted to specific cell and tumor types across the body and could offer a differentiating option compared to current treatments.

"This presentation is a recognition of the last two years of intense work on the preclinical package of our drug candidate STI-001 in collaboration with Nicolas Manel’s laboratory at Institut Curie / Inserm that demonstrates that packaging a therapeutic modality in a virus-like particle has the potential to unlock systemic delivery for STING via preferential dendritic cell targeting, which is unique in the field," said Sylvain Carlioz, CEO of Stimunity.

Presentation Details:

Abstract title: Cellular selectivity of STING stimulation determines priming of anti-tumor T cell responses
Abstract Number: 7829
Presenter: Bakhos Jneid, Institut Curie
Session Title: Late-Breaking Research: Experimental and Molecular Therapeutics 2
Date/Time: April 13, 2022, 9:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. CT
Location: Poster Section 16
Data Highlights:

Delivery of a well-characterized STING activator, cGAMP, by intra-tumoral injections of virus-like particles (cGAMP-VLP) leads to:
Differentiation of tumor-specific T cells
Decrease in tumor regulatory T cells (Tregs) that would otherwise suppress an immune response
Preferential targeting of dendritic cells leading to activation of tumor-specific T cells
Delivery of PORT-5 (STI-001) showed synergy when combined with an antibody that depletes Tregs, leading to complete and lasting tumor eradication
Additional synergy demonstrated when PORT-5 (STI-001) was combined with anti-PD1 treatments
Specific cell targeting of STING stimulation shapes the anti-tumor T cell response and reveals a therapeutic strategy with T cell modulators, which may address the current limitations of STING-based approaches in patients