Genome & Co. Ltd. has reported preclinical findings of its anti-CNTN4 antibody, GENA-104A16, and anti-APP antibody, 5A7 — stressing the contactin-4 (CNTN4) and amyloid precursor protein (APP) axis as a potential target for immuno-oncology. In the latest murine experiments, investigators led by Genome executives and researchers of Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) found that blocking the interaction between CNTN4 and APP promoted cancer-destroying responses in mice, suggesting the pathway as a target for immunotherapy.
Cancer Research UK and Kisoji Biotechnology Inc. have signed an agreement to bring Kisoji's naked anti-TROP2 antibody, KJ-103, into a first-in-human trial. KJ-103 is a single domain antibody that binds to a unique epitope on TROP2.
Oblique Therapeutics AB has achieved a milestone within its research project on the Nav1.8 ion channel with the goal of developing innovative therapeutics for patients with chronic pain.
The anti-HER2 biparatopic antibody (bpAb) KJ-015 was rationally designed at Shanghai Bao Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd. by leveraging published antibody-antigen structures to share common light chain with two Fab arms, resulting in functionally balanced high affinity for two HER2 nonoverlapping epitopes.
Claudin-6 (CLDN6) is a tight junction protein that has been found to be up-regulated in around 20 different types of cancer, among them ovarian, endometrial and germ cell tumors. Conventional T-cell engagers (TCEs), although effective, may be improved with costimulation to overcome T-cell exhaustion due to CDE3 stimulation alone.
Isomab Ltd. has nominated ISM-001 as a development candidate for peripheral arterial disease. ISM-001 is a potential first-in-class therapeutic antibody designed to neutralize VEGF-A165b, the anti-angiogenic VEGF-A splice isoform that acts as a brake on development of new blood vessels leading to chronic limb threatening ischemia.
Researchers from Nitrase Therapeutics Inc. recently presented preclinical findings on NTX-101, a murine chimeric antibody designed to specifically bind to nitrated tyrosine on α-synuclein (α-Syn). It was demonstrated that NTX-101 bound both chemically and synthetically nitrated α-Syn (n-Syn), with no binding to non-nitrated α-Syn or an irrelevant nitrated protein observed.
Insitro Inc. has signed three strategic agreements with Eli Lilly & Co. focused on advancing potential new medicines for metabolic diseases, including metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), based on targets identified by Insitro using its artificial intelligence/machine learning-based platform.
The melanocortin MC4 receptor (MC4R), expressed in all brain regions, plays a relevant role in metabolism regulation and in the control of hunger and satiety. MC4R-specific agonist ligands such as setmelanotide have shown potential as antiobesity therapeutics, although reported off-target effects highlight the need for more specific compounds.