EVOLVE™ Platform Shows Promise as a Differentiated T Cell Costimulation Approach for the Treatment of Solid and Hematological Malignancies
Presentation Highlights CD2 as an Optimal Costimulatory Target; Demonstrates Durable in vivo Anti-Tumor Efficacy with EVOLVE
BRANFORD, Conn., Oct. 24, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EvolveImmune Therapeutics, an immuno-oncology company developing first-in-category, multifunctional biotherapeutics to overcome cancer-driven immunodeficiency, today announced that new preclinical data highlighting EVOLVE™, the company’s novel costimulatory T cell engager platform, were presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Special Conference on Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy. The results were featured in a poster presentation (#B44) entitled, “EVOLVE: a Novel Costimulatory T Cell Engager Platform Engineered for the Treatment of Solid Tumors,” at the conference, which was held October 21-23, 2022, in Boston.
Most current immunotherapies rely on the presence of pre-existing tumor-reactive T cells, which are absent or at low levels in many tumors. Moreover, they do not provide coordinated costimulatory receptor activation to overcome T cell dysfunction and drive more effective and durable anti-tumor responses. The EVOLVE platform was created to unleash potent, selective and integrated T cell costimulation to bypass low tumor immunogenicity, conditionally activate adaptive immunity, and reduce T cell exhaustion, in order to address unmet needs for the treatment of solid and hematologic tumors.
Data reported in the poster presentation highlighted key features of the EVOLVE platform including its unique focus on the CD2 receptor on T cells as an optimal costimulatory target. The company presented translational and functional evidence supporting the superiority of CD2 as a high-value target for costimulation, including molecular analysis of patient samples demonstrating that CD2 receptors are broadly present on tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) across a range of tumor types, relative to other potential costimulatory receptors such as CD28 and 4-1BB. EvolveImmune’s team showed that coordinated T cell receptor and CD2 engagement induced by the formation of an integrated synthetic immune synapse on human T cells was superior to other T cell costimulation strategies, as demonstrated by enhanced and sustained T cell activation and expansion, cytolytic activity, and cytokine production. This improved in vitro profile correlated with highly effective and durable T cell-mediated antitumor responses in in vivo models which were greater that those observed with matched CD3-bispecific antibody controls. Presented data also highlighted the potential safety advantages of EVOLVE, demonstrating the platform’s ability to precisely tune the activation of T cells to promote optimal co-stimulation without increased cytokine release.
“Overcoming resistance mechanisms in the solid tumor microenvironment to provide more effective and safer treatments for more patients is a significant therapeutic challenge in the field,” said Nils Lonberg, Ph.D., a member of EvolveImmune’s scientific advisory board. “The EvolveImmune team has unlocked important and under-appreciated biology related to the potential of the CD2 receptor to costimulate T cell tumor killing and sustain durable T cell responses, without off-target activation. In preclinical studies, the EVOLVE T cell engagers stand out from other bispecifics. I am encouraged by these data and the potential of EVOLVE to break the solid tumor barrier.”
“These new data offer support for our belief that the EVOLVE platform holds great promise as an emerging, first-in-category immunotherapeutic strategy to address unmet medical needs in oncology, particularly as it relates to overcoming the therapeutic resistance we observe in most solid tumor conditions,” stated Jeremy Myers, Ph.D., senior vice president, research and development at EvolveImmune. “We are particularly encouraged by the deep and durable anti-tumor efficacy we have demonstrated in a variety of disease-relevant preclinical settings. We believe these results show the differentiated ability of our platform to promote T cell expansion and prevent T cell dysfunction, while derisking cytokine release syndrome occurrence.”
Additional information on the AACR Special Conference on Immunology and Immunotherapy is available through the conference website at: https://www.aacr.org/meeting/aacr-special-conference-tumor-immunology-and-immunotherapy/
About EvolveImmune Therapeutics
EvolveImmune Therapeutics, Inc. is an immunotherapy platform company developing first-in-category, multifunctional biotherapeutics designed to overcome cancer-driven immunodeficiency in a range of solid tumors and hematological cancers. The company is rapidly advancing two first-in-category programs, with first-in-human clinical trials anticipated in 18 months. The company is supported by a syndicate of top-tier life science industry investors including Pfizer Ventures, Solasta Ventures, Takeda Ventures, Yonjin Ventures and Elm Street Ventures.
For more information, please visit: www.evolveimmune.com
