CDR-Life Unveils Results on T-Cell Engagers Targeting Hard-to-Treat Solid Tumors at AACR 2024

Preclinical data shows promising anti-tumor activity and specificity for KK-LC-1/HLA-A*01 positive tumors

ZÜRICH, Switzerland, April 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CDR-Life Inc. today announced the presentation of preclinical data demonstrating the promising anti-tumor properties of its peptide major histocompatibility complex (pMHC) T-cell engager (TCE) antibodies at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2024, taking place this week in San Diego, California.

The Kita-Kyushu lung cancer antigen-1 (KK-LC-1/CT83) is a promising target because it is not expressed in normal tissues and is highly prevalent across a broad range of cancers including gastric, lung, breast and cervical cancer. Identifying a TCE against the KK-LC-1 peptide on HLA-A*01 will provide an option for patients that do not benefit from the more common HLA-A*02 targeting therapeutics currently in development. However, high levels of similar off-target peptides presented in healthy tissues make targeting the KK-LC-1/HLA-A*01 challenging.

CDR-Life’s data gathered on pMHC TCE antibodies with high specificity towards HLA-A*01 restricted KK-LC-1 epitopes demonstrate the antibodies’ promising anti-tumor activity and specificity for KK-LC-1/HLA-A*01 positive tumors.

“While there is a growing number of agents targeting pMHCs, most of them are restricted to HLA-A*02, underscoring the need to identify effective pMHC targeted therapies for solid tumors on other alleles to reach a greater number of patients,” said Swethajit Biswas, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer at CDR-Life. “We are excited about the progress we have made with our TCE platform in hard-to-treat solid tumors and look forward to sharing additional insights for the benefit of this patient population.”

Key Findings:

• The evaluated TCEs demonstrated potent killing of KK-LC-1/HLA-A*01-positive cancer cells.
• The data showed no evidence for off-target cytotoxic activity towards KK-LC-1-negative/ HLA-A*01-positive healthy human cells.
• In vitro studies showed significantly higher TCE-dependent T-cell activation towards cells presenting the target peptide compared to the risk peptides.
• Characterization of the TCE peptide recognition shows a very specific binding profile.

Presentation Overview:

Title: Novel antibodies against a KK-LC-1-derived peptide presented on HLA-A*01 on tumor cells
Date and Time: Wednesday Apr 10, 2024, 9:00 AM - 12:30 PM PT
Location: Poster Section 54
Poster Number: 18

About CDR-Life

CDR-Life is developing powerful T-cell engagers (TCE) to eradicate hard-to-treat solid tumors. Our integrated antibody-based TCE platform unlocks access to a wide range of cancer antigens. We are leveraging this platform to advance a pipeline of potent and selective TCE therapeutics targeting intracellular and surface tumor antigens. With a team of proven drug development experts and backed by leading cross-Atlantic investors, we are working to empower patients’ own immune systems to eliminate tumors.

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