Researchers from Oxford Biomedica (UK) Ltd. have published findings from their work aiming to identify antigens that could represent novel targets for CAR T-cell therapies against acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
Kymera Therapeutics Inc. has published the characterization of KT-253, a novel compound designed to degrade the murine double minute 2 (MDM2) protein, offering a promising approach for cancers retaining wild-type p53.
The curtain is coming down on one of Europe’s longest-established biopharmas, with Novartis AG announcing it is to shut Morphosys AG’s facilities, following its 2024 acquisition of the one-time antibody pioneer for $2.9 billion. The closure of sites in the U.S. and Germany by the end of 2025 will affect 330 employees.
KAT2A is a histone acetyltransferase that functions as a transcriptional activator which, together with its paralogue KAT2B, is markedly overexpressed in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) compared to in hematopoietic progenitor cells.
Interleukin-18 (IL-18) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine that modulates innate and adaptive immune responses. Decoy-resistant IL-18, DR-18, from Simcha Therapeutics Inc., is an engineered IL-18 cytokine able to interact with the IL-18 receptor but resistant to IL-18-binding protein (IL18BP), which is a negative regulator of IL-18 signaling, thus overcoming the antitumoral efficacy limitation seen with recombinant IL-18.
Kura Oncology, Inc. and Kyowa Kirin Co. Ltd.’s selective oral menin inhibitor ziftomenib showed encouraging data across multiple studies, the most encouraging of which were in combination with other standard of care therapies in patients with NPM1-mutant and KMT2A-rearranged acute myeloid leukemia.
Cathepsin G (CTSG) is overexpressed and aberrantly localized for antigen presentation on acute myeloid leukemia blasts and stem cells compared to normal hematopoietic progenitors. Earlier this year, Crossbow Therapeutics Inc. announced the nomination of its first development candidate, CBX-250, a TCR-mimetic (TCRm) bispecific T-cell engager (TCE) antibody targeting a CTSG peptide-human leukocyte antigen (pHLA) complex and CD3.
The lack of acute myeloid leukemia-specific antigens is one of the challenges for targeted immunotherapy together with on-target off-tumor toxicities due to the expression of the target in normal myeloid cells. A subset of T cells – Vδ2 T-cells – which represent ~5% of the T-cell population in healthy donors, are seen as part of emerging immunotherapeutic strategies.
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