Our immune cells are not just “defenders” against deadly viruses and pathogens but also a great balancer for tissue homeostasis. For neurological disorders, understanding the neuro-immune axis could be key to treating previously untreatable conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, according to Jun R. Huh, professor of immunology at Harvard Medical School.
Researchers from EMD Serono Research and Development Institute Inc. hypothesized that modulation of two T-cell costimulatory pathways, such as CD28 and OX40, in one single molecule would be more efficient at controlling T-cell activation than modulating each pathway separately.
To address limitations with CAR T therapies targeting CD19, Allogene Therapeutics Inc. has developed ALLO-329, a CD19/CD70-targeting CAR therapy that is able to deplete activated alloreactive lymphocytes, while endowing dual targeting of CD19+ B cells and CD70+ T cells.
Seismic Therapeutic Inc.'s S-1117 was designed as a pan-IgG protease fused to an effector function silent human IgG1 Fc domain. The candidate, being developed for the treatment of autoantibody-mediated diseases, was engineered for chronic subcutaneous administration using a proprietary machine learning-enabled platform, with the aim of reducing immunogenicity while maintaining potency.
Longbio Pharma (Suzhou) Co. Ltd. has obtained IND approval from China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for LP-003, the company’s next-generation anti-IgE antibody, to enter a clinical trial for the treatment of food allergy.
Blood dendritic cell antigen 2 (BDCA2) is expressed in plasmacytoid dendritic cells. These cells’ overproduction of type I interferon is closely linked to the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus and other autoimmune diseases.
Autoimmunity Biosolutions has closed a seed financing to support its work advancing a next-generation, immuno-corrective therapy for autoimmune diseases. The company’s approach targets a branch of the interleukin-7 (IL-7)/interleukin-7 receptor (IL-7R) pathway controlled by the soluble IL-7R (sIL-7R), a critical amplifier of autoimmune reactions.
An international consortium of thousands of scientists is creating the Human Cell Atlas, a three-dimensional map of all the cells in the body. The goal is to understand all the cells that make up human tissues, organs and systems, which will enable multiple medical applications. This collection of cell maps is openly available for navigation at single-cell resolution, identified through omics analyses that reveal the tridimensional distribution of each cell.
Jiangsu Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group Co. Ltd. and Shanghai Hansoh Biomedical Co. Ltd. have synthesized salts of complement factor B (CFB) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of allergy, asthma, age-related macular degeneration, inflammatory disorders, stroke, Parkinson’s, Crohn’s diseases and hepatic fibrosis, among others.