Lapix Therapeutics Inc. has announced the successful outcome of its pre-IND meeting request with the FDA to achieve alignment on the company's IND-enabling plan for LPX-TI641, being developed for neuro-autoimmune indications such as multiple sclerosis (MS), neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD), and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody disease (MOGAD).

Unexpected behavior of neutrophils unveiled by researchers at Stanford University could lead to a new type of immunotherapy to treat cancer. Although various studies have suggested that these cells are harmful due to their immunosuppressive characteristics, the scientists saw in them an opportunity to redirect them and eliminate tumors.

The efficacy of allogeneic cell therapeutics for regenerative or oncology indications can be compromised by the emergence of antibodies against those cells, as observed in clinical trials. To overcome this limitation, scientists from the University of California and collaborators have developed a gene engineering approach providing antibody protection for cell therapeutics. The new approach to protecting cells from antibody-mediated cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) relies on the overexpression of the IgG receptor CD64.

Researchers at the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology’s Center for Genomic Regulation (CRG) and Pulmobiotics Ltd. have used one bacterium to fight another. In mouse models, the team used engineered Mycoplasma pneumoniae to treat Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the chief culprit in ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).

Poolbeg Pharma plc is expanding its evaluation of POLB-001 into oncology after findings indicated POLB-001's potential to dampen the pro-inflammatory cytokine release syndrome (CRS) in patients receiving chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies for cancer.

Researchers from Therapyx Inc. and Intravacc BV assessed the potential of intranasal administration of a novel gonococcal vaccine candidate consisting of outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) and microsphere (ms)-encapsulated interleukin-12 (IL-12 ms). It was previously demonstrated that female mice can be immunized intravaginally with gonococcal OMVs plus IL-12 ms to induce anti-gonococcal antibodies and resistance to genital tract challenge with live Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

Trex Bio Inc. has entered into a multi-year research collaboration and exclusive worldwide license agreement with Eli Lilly & Co. to develop novel therapies for the treatment of immune-mediated diseases.

Researchers from Neoleukin Therapeutics Inc. have described NEO-TRA1, a novel CD25-targeted de novo non-α agonist of the IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) designed to selectively expand Tregs.

Researchers at the University of Cape Town have compared the T-cell responses of individuals who were infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis but were able to control the infection to those who developed active disease. The researchers wrote that the shared antigens in controllers “can be considered as high-priority targets for future vaccine development.” Their results were published online in Nature Medicine on Jan. 5, 2023. In their experiments, the team first sequenced the CDR3β region of the T-cell repertoire in a total of 166 individuals with M. tuberculosis infection who progressed to either TB or controlled infection.