24 May, 2023
Phio Pharmaceuticals Announces Initiation of Collaborative Clinical Trial with PH-762, AgonOx's Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocyte Program (AGX148) and Providence Cancer Institute
One of two newly announced clinical trials for its lead product candidate, PH-762
MARLBOROUGH, Mass., May 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq: PHIO), a clinical stage biotechnology company whose proprietary INTASYL™ RNAi platform technology is designed to make immune cells more effective in killing tumor cells, today announced its clinical development partner, AgonOx, Inc, in collaboration with Providence Cancer Institute, has completed the site initiation visit and can commence with patient accrual.
The clinical trial will assess the safety and the potential for enhanced therapeutic benefit from the administration of Phio's PH-762 treated 'double positive' (DP) CD8 tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in patients with melanoma and other advanced solid tumors. The trial will be conducted at Providence Cancer Institute in Portland, Oregon, by Principal Investigator Brendan Curti, MD, Medical Oncologist and Robert W. Franz Endowed Chair for Clinical Research at the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, a division of Providence.
"With both regulatory clearance and the completion of the site initiation visit this study can now proceed and we are excited to test PH-762 combined with this new TIL therapy," said Andrew Weinberg, PhD, President and CSO at AgonOx and Member at the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, Providence Cancer Institute.
"With the initiation of this clinical trial, Phio continues to advance the development of improved cell therapies for oncologic indications. We are pleased with our ongoing collaboration with AgonOx and the Providence Cancer Institute and look forward to continued progress," said Robert Bitterman, Phio's President and CEO.
Phio recently received FDA clearance to initiate a clinical trial of intratumoral PH-762 in patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma, and Merkel cell carcinoma. The trial is expected to commence in the second half of 2023.
About Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp.
Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq: PHIO) is a clinical stage biotechnology company whose proprietary INTASYL™ RNAi technology is designed to make immune cells more effective in killing tumor cells. INTASYL is the only self-delivering RNAi technology focused on immuno-oncology therapeutics. INTASYL drugs precisely target specific proteins that reduce the body's ability to fight cancer, without the need for specialized formulations or drug delivery systems.
For additional information, visit the Company's website, www.phiopharma.com.
About AgonOx, Inc.
AgonOx, Inc. is a privately held, Portland, OR-based biotechnology company. The company was the first to identify and expand tumor-reactive T cells using CD39 and CD103 (DP) CD8s. A patented process that can also be used to identify tumor-reactive TCRs. Agonox is also developing a pipeline of novel immunotherapy drugs targeting key regulators of the immune response to cancer. For additional information, visit the company's website, www.agonox.com.
About Providence Cancer Institute of Oregon
Providence Cancer Institute of Oregon, a part of Providence St. Joseph Health, offers the latest in cancer services, including diagnosis, treatment, prevention, education and support. Providence is home to the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, an internationally renowned leader in the field of cancer immunotherapy since 1993, where investigators lead more than 400 active clinical trials for cancers of the breast, colon, prostate, lung, esophagus, liver, pancreas, head and neck, ovary, skin, blood and other conditions. Learn more at Providence.org/ORcancer.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as "intends," "believes," "anticipates," "indicates," "plans," "expects," "suggests," "may," "would," "should," "potential," "designed to," "will," "ongoing," "estimate," "forecast," "target," "predict," "could" and similar references, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. These statements are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions and are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Examples of forward-looking statements include statements regarding the potential for enhanced therapeutic benefit from the administration of PH-762 treated DP TIL and the timing of the commencement of our anticipated Phase 1b clinical trial of PH-762 in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma and Merkel cell carcinoma. Our actual results may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of important factors, including, but not limited to, the impact to our business and operations by inflationary pressures, rising interest rates, recession fears, the development of our product candidates, results from our preclinical and clinical activities, our ability to execute on business strategies, our ability to develop our product candidates with collaboration partners, and the success of any such collaborations, the timeline and duration for advancing our product candidates into clinical development, the timing or likelihood of regulatory filings and approvals, the success of our efforts to commercialize our product candidates if approved, our ability to manufacture and supply our product candidates for clinical activities, and for commercial use if approved, the scope of protection we are able to establish and maintain for intellectual property rights covering our technology platform, our ability to obtain future financing, market and other conditions and those identified in our Annual Report on Form 10-K under the caption "Risk Factors" and in other filings the Company periodically makes with the SEC. Readers are urged to review these risk factors and to not act in reliance on any forward-looking statements, as actual results may differ from those contemplated by our forward-looking statements. Phio does not undertake to update forward-looking statements to reflect a change in its views, events or circumstances that occur after the date of this release, except as required by law.
SOURCE Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp.
1 March, 2021
Phio Pharmaceuticals and AgonOx, Inc. Announce Collaboration on Clinical Development of Novel T Cell-based Cancer Immunotherapies
MARLBOROUGH, Mass., March 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq: PHIO), a biotechnology company developing the next generation of immuno-oncology therapeutics based on its proprietary self-delivering RNAi (INTASYL™) therapeutic platform, today announced it has entered into a clinical development collaboration with AgonOx, Inc. to develop novel T cell-based cancer immunotherapies using Phio's lead INTASYL based product candidate PH-762 and AgonOx's "double positive" (DP) tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) technology. The companies have shown that the combination of their respective technologies can result in enhanced TIL therapeutics, and based on these data, the collaboration will focus on conducting a clinical study for PH-762 treated DP TILs. The study is expected to start enrolling patients later this year.
AgonOx in collaboration with the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, a division of the Providence Cancer Institute, developed a method for the identification, isolation and expansion of tumor-specific CD8 T cells from cancer patients. AgonOx has also shown that "double positive" (DP) CD8 T cells isolated from human solid tumors have increased tumor killing activity when compared to CD8 TIL that were not enriched prior to expansion. Preclinical data presented at SITC 2020 by AgonOx in collaboration with Phio show that treating the DP CD8 TIL with Phio's PH-762, increases the tumor killing activity of the CD8 DP TIL even further (two-fold increase). As a result, the use of PH-762 treated DP CD8 TIL is expected to enhance therapeutic responses in cancer patients.
Under the terms of the collaboration agreement, AgonOx will receive financial support for the clinical trial from Phio and Phio is entitled to certain future development milestones and sales related royalty payments from AgonOx's DP TIL technology.
"Autologous T cell therapies hold a lot of promise, however, there is still a lot of research needed to be done to unlock its full therapeutic potential, including ways to improve upon the first generation of TIL products, and ways to use TIL therapy in more types of cancer," said Dr. Gerrit Dispersyn, President and CEO of Phio Pharmaceuticals. "By joining forces with AgonOx, we believe our collaboration can fulfil these unmet needs, without the need for complex and costly technologies, such as genetic engineering."
"Our collaboration with Phio is based on data showing that PH-762 increases the activity of our CD8 DP TIL technology, therefore we believe this combination should increase the therapeutic efficacy of this first-in-man study," stated by Dr. Andrew Weinberg, President/CSO of AgonOx, Inc. and Full Member at the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute.
Dr. James Cardia, VP of Business Operations of Phio Pharmaceuticals, commented: "Both the clinical community and the investment community are embracing the broad potential of cell-based immunotherapy, and TIL therapy in specific, based on recent clinical and corporate development activities in this field. Our data show the important role that INTASYL based products can play in improving adoptive cell therapy, and we look forward to working with AgonOx to bring better cell therapies to patients."
About TIL Therapy and "DP" TILs
In TIL therapy, T cells are extracted from a patient's own tumor. These cells are then expanded ex-vivo, and infused back into the patient. The infused TIL naturally recognize the tumor and then attack the cancer cells. Currently, clinical applications focus on indications such as metastatic melanoma and cervical cancer. Increasing the frequency of tumor-reactive cells within TIL products should allow for improved response rates in these indications and expand the use of this form of treatment to patients with locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic cancers including head and neck, non-small cell lung cancer and other solid tumor types. AgonOx developed methods to enrich for tumor-killing T cells, which could greatly improve the immune response in cancer patients – potentially leading to successful treatment of tumors. Their research in collaboration with the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, entitled "Co-expression of CD39 and CD103 identifies tumor-reactive CD8 positive T cells in human solid tumors" was published in Nature Communications and forms the basis of this clinical study (Duhen, T., Duhen, R., Montler, R. et al, 2018: Co-expression of CD39 and CD103 identifies tumor-reactive CD8 T cells in human solid tumors. Nat Commun 9, 2724).
About PH-762
PH-762 is a self-delivering RNAi compound that targets the checkpoint protein PD-1. Checkpoint proteins, such as PD-1, normally act as a type of "off switch" that prevents T cells from attacking certain cells, such as cancer cells, in the body. PH-762 silences PD-1 checkpoint expression, thereby removing the "off switch" and resulting in enhanced T cell activation and tumor cytotoxicity. Experimental data shows that PH-762 can silence the expression of PD-1 in target human T cells in a potent and durable manner, and can increase function of patient derived TILs or engineered cells, such as CAR T-cells for use in adoptive cell therapy. PH-762 use does not involve genetic engineering, and its cell delivery does not require special formulations or other complex delivery tools.
About AgonOx, Inc.
Agonox, Inc. is a privately held, Portland, OR-based biotechnology company that grew out of the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute at the Providence Cancer Institute, Portland, OR. The company is developing a pipeline of novel immunotherapy drugs targeting key regulators of the immune response to cancer. For additional information, visit the company's website, www.agonox.com.
About Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp.
Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq: PHIO) is a biotechnology company developing the next generation of immuno-oncology therapeutics based on its self-delivering RNAi (INTASYL™) therapeutic platform. The Company's efforts are focused on silencing tumor-induced suppression of the immune system through its proprietary INTASYL platform with utility in immune cells and the tumor micro-environment. Our goal is to develop powerful INTASYL therapeutic compounds that can weaponize immune effector cells to overcome tumor immune escape, thereby providing patients a powerful new treatment option that goes beyond current treatment modalities. For additional information, visit the Company's website, www.phiopharma.com.
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13 July, 2018
PROVIDENCE AND AGONOX RESEARCHERS PUBLISH GROUNDBREAKING TUMOR KILLING T-CELL RESEARCH
PORTLAND, Ore. — Researchers at the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, or EACRI, and Agonox, Inc. have published groundbreaking work concerning tumor-killing T cells which could greatly improve the immune response in cancer patients – leading to successful treatment of tumors.
The two groups of scientists worked together to develop methods for the identification, isolation and expansion of tumor-killing T cells in cancer patients. The research, entitled “Co-expression of CD39 and CD103 identifies tumor-reactive CD8 CD8 T cells in human solid tumors” has published in the online journal Nature Communications.
Agonox, Inc. is a Portland-based biotechnology company that grew out of the EACRI at Providence Cancer Institute.
“This manuscript highlights the importance of collaborative research between academics and biotech, which led to the discovery of pinpointing the body’s own defense against cancer, tumor-specific T cells,” said Andrew Weinberg, Ph.D., chief and Judith Ann Hartmann Endowed Chair of the Laboratory of Basic Immunology at the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, located in the Robert W. Franz Cancer Center, and president/chief scientific officer of Agonox, Inc.
“The work shows that patients with a higher percentage of these T cells within their tumor have increased survival after conventional cancer treatments. The ability to enrich and expand these tumor-specific T cells in culture, free from the immunosuppressive elements within tumors, could greatly enhance therapeutic responses in cancer patients receiving autologous T-cell infusions.”
The published research represents nearly five years of work overseen by Weinberg with lead researchers Thomas Duhen, Ph.D., Agonox, and Rebekka Duhen, Ph.D., EACRI. It will add to the growing body of knowledge at Providence Cancer Institute, which is known internationally for its work in immunotherapy.
“Immuno-oncology is the cornerstone of our research portfolio at Providence Cancer Institute,” said Walter J. Urba, M.D., Ph.D., director, EACRI, Robert W. Franz Cancer Center. “Our focus on immunotherapy has aided the development of a number of immunotherapy agents for the treatment of patients with cancer. This new discovery represents a novel approach for patient-specific, autologous cellular therapy, one we plan to test in future clinical trials.”
Agonox will work with clinicians and researchers at Providence Cancer Institute to fully optimize these new techniques for future clinical trials.
“We hope to incorporate this new discovery into our procedures for generating personalized T-cell products for the treatment of patients with cancer,” said Eric Tran, Ph.D., assistant member at the EACRI and leader of the Antitumor T-cell Response Laboratory.
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Robert W. Franz Cancer Center, a part of Providence Health & Services, offers the latest in cancer services, including diagnostic, treatment, prevention, education, support and internationally renowned research. The Earle A. Chiles Research Institute at Providence Cancer Institute is one of 16 research institutions selected to form the Bristol Myers Squibb International Immuno-Oncology Network. This global collaboration will focus on helping the body’s own immune system fight cancer and bring more clinical trials to more patients in our community than ever before. Visit www.providenceoregon.org/cancer.
Agonox is a privately held, biotechnology company developing a pipeline of novel immunotherapy drugs targeting key regulators of the immune response to cancer. http://agonox.com
Contacts
AgonOx, Inc.
Grant Risdon, PhD, 206-794-0351
grant.risdon@agonox.com
or
Providence Cancer Center
Jean Powell Marks, 503-215-6433
jean.marks@providence.org
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04 Oct 2016
Daiichi Sankyo Announces New Strategic Immuno-Oncology Research Collaboration with AgonOx
Tokyo, Japan and Parsippany, NJ – (October 4, 2016) – Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited (hereafter, Daiichi Sankyo) announced today that it has entered into a strategic collaboration with AgonOx, Inc., a privately held biotechnology company developing a pipeline of novel immunotherapy drugs targeting key regulators of the immune response to cancer, to develop an undisclosed immuno-oncology target.
Under terms of the agreement, Daiichi Sankyo and AgonOx will collaborate on preclinical development of the program. Following preclinical assessment, Daiichi Sankyo has an exclusive option to research, develop, manufacture and commercialize the program worldwide. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
“We are excited to collaborate with AgonOx, which has extensive expertise in validating the expression and function of immuno-oncology targets,” said Antoine Yver, MD, MSc, Executive Vice President and Global Head, Oncology Research and Development, Daiichi Sankyo. “While this collaboration will help strengthen our immuno-oncology capabilities, it also aligns with our overall mission of discovering and delivering science that can change the standard of care for patients with cancer.”
About Daiichi Sankyo Cancer Enterprise
The vision of Daiichi Sankyo Cancer Enterprise is to push beyond traditional thinking to align world-class science to create innovative treatments for patients with cancer. The oncology pipeline of Daiichi Sankyo continues to grow and currently includes more than 20 small molecules and monoclonal antibodies with novel targets in both solid and hematological cancers. Compounds in phase 3 development include: quizartinib, an oral FLT3-ITD inhibitor, for newly-diagnosed and relapsed/
refractory FLT3-ITD+ acute myeloid leukemia (AML); pexidartinib, an oral CSF-1R inhibitor, for tenosynovial giant cell tumor (TGCT), also known as pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS) and giant cell tumor of the tendon sheath (GCT-TS), which also is being investigated in combination with anti-PD1 immunotherapy, pembrolizumab, in a range of solid tumors; and tivantinib, an oral MET inhibitor, for second-line treatment of MET-high hepatocellular carcinoma in partnership with ArQule, Inc.
About Daiichi Sankyo
Daiichi Sankyo Group is dedicated to the creation and supply of innovative pharmaceutical products to address diversified, unmet medical needs of patients in both mature and emerging markets. With over 100 years of scientific expertise and a presence in more than 20 countries, Daiichi Sankyo and its 16,000
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20 Oct 2014
AGONOX’S OX40 PLATFORM BEING UTILIZED IN MEDIMMUNE’S PHASE 1 OX40 AGONIST STUDY
PORTLAND, Oregon
AgonOx, a biotechnology company focused on immunotherapy development, today announced that its OX40 platform is being utilized in MedImmune’s Phase I trial of its humanized OX40 agonist, MEDI6383. MedImmune is the global biologics research and development arm of AstraZeneca.
OX40 agonists are under clinical development to determine their anti-tumor effect, as they may enhance T-cell stimulation and promote the immune system’s potential to kill tumor cells.MedImmune licensed the OX40 agonist platform in 2011 from AgonOx as the result of a partnership between the Providence Cancer Center and AgonOx, a spin-off company from the Providence Cancer Center.
The phase I multi-center trial (NCT02221960) is designed to evaluate the safety and tolerability of MEDI6383 as a treatment for patients with solid tumors.
This new clinical trial builds upon the translational research and clinical evaluation of an OX40 agonist conducted at the Robert W. Franz Cancer Research Institute at Providence Cancer Center by a research team led by Andrew Weinberg, Ph.D. and Brendan Curti, MD.
“Immuno-oncology is one of the most promising areas of clinical stage drug development today,” said Andrew Weinberg, AgonOx founder and president, and inventor of the OX40 platform for cancer therapy licensed by MedImmune. “The evaluation of this new OX40 agonist, MEDI6383, represents an opportunity to improve immune-based cancer therapies.”
Providence Cancer Center, one of the sites selected by MedImmune to participate in the clinical trial, has recently enrolled their first patient.
“We are excited to be opening a new chapter in OX40 clinical development that is based on the pioneering work of Dr. Weinberg and the team at Providence Cancer Center,” said Dr. Curti, medical oncologist and director of the Providence Biotherapy Program at Providence Cancer Center.
“Using the body’s own immune system as a defense against cancer has been our center’s goal for over 20 years,” said Walter J. Urba, M.D., Ph.D., oncologist and director, Robert W. Franz Cancer Research Center in the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, Providence Cancer Center. “I am pleased at the prospect of offering this potentially life-saving trial to patients at our center.”
AgonOx is a privately held, biotechnology company developing a pipeline of novel immunotherapy drugs targeting key regulators of the immune response to cancer. In 2011, in partnership with Providence Health & Services-Oregon, AgonOx entered into an exclusive global partnership with MedImmune, the global biologics arm of AstraZeneca, to develop its OX40 agonist program. Visit http://agonox.com.
Providence Cancer Center, a part of Providence Health & Services, offers the latest in cancer services, including diagnostic, treatment, prevention, education, support and internationally renowned research. The main area of investigation at the Center is immunotherapy, a specialized field of study focused on triggering the immune system to fight cancer. Visit www.providence.org/cancer.
Contacts
AgonOx, Inc.
Grant Risdon, PhD, 206-794-0351
grant.risdon@agonox.com
or
Providence Cancer Center
Jean Powell Marks, 503-215-6433
jean.marks@providence.org
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31 Oct 2011
AGONOX PARTNERS WITH MEDIMMUNE FOR DEVELOPMENT OF OX40 AGONISTS IN CANCER THERAPY
Companies enter into global partnership to advance immune stimulators
PORTLAND, OR Oct. 31, 2011 – AgonOx today announced that it has entered into an exclusive global partnership with MedImmune, the global biologics arm of AstraZeneca, to develop agonists using its OX40 platform. MedImmune will lead further preclinical and clinical studies of this tumor-specific T-cell immunity stimulator for the potential treatment of cancer. “We are very pleased to collaborate with MedImmune to advance our OX40 agonist programs,” said AgonOx CEO Llew Keltner, M.D., Ph.D. “MedImmune has impressive capabilities in immuno-oncology, and we believe offers great potential for eventually bringing therapies utilizing the OX40 mechanism to trigger tumor-specific immune responses to patients.”
"As the inventor of the OX40 agonist technology, it is gratifying to work with a strong partner to take this significant scientific and therapeutic discovery forward," said Andrew Weinberg, Ph.D., Managing Partner of AgonOx.
MedImmune will also support further OX40 research at Providence Cancer Center, where the foundational preclinical and clinical development of OX40 has been conducted. Additional details of the agreement will not
be disclosed.
"Typically, the first line of defense against cancer in the body is the immune system," said Walter Urba, M.D., Ph.D., Director of Cancer Research at the Robert W. Franz Cancer Research Center, Portland, Oregon. "OX40 agonists have shown very intriguing preclinical and clinical behavior in specific activation of T-cells to attack tumors, and I am pleased to have MedImmune engaged in moving OX40 forward into additional human studies."
“Our Foundation has been pleased to support the early fundamental and clinical investigations through Drs. William Redmond and Brendan Curti of the Providence Portland Medical Center,” states Howard Soule, Ph.D., Executive Vice President and Chief Science Officer, the Prostate Cancer Foundation. “We are pleased that a strong partner is now on board to help accelerate development and delivery of this investigational immunotherapy to patients.”
About OX40
OX40 is a protein transiently expressed on the surface of effector T-cells, but only after activation of the T-cells by immune-stimulating antigens, including tumor antigens. Binding OX40 with either anti-OX40 antibodies or OX40 ligand compositions has been shown to inhibit apoptosis in such T-cells, causing T-cell proliferation, immune attack on tumors, and sometimes very distinct tumor-specific therapeutic responses.
About AgonOx
AgonOx is developing OX40 agonists and other immune system activators for use in cancer therapy. Research in the field of T-cell modulation conducted worldwide with OX40 and other agents has demonstrated that the use of T-cell modulating therapies in combination with specific anti-tumor therapies has the potential for yielding benefits for patients with cancer. AgonOx is focused on the development of immune system modulators in combination with other therapies, and is actively seeking combination therapies for in-licensing or partnering. Combination therapies of interest include cytotoxic agents, other immunologic modifiers, and tumor ablation techniques and devices. AgonOx is a closely held private company.
About MedImmune
MedImmune, the global biologics arm of AstraZeneca PLC, has approximately 3,500 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at www.medimmune.com.
About Providence Cancer Center
The Robert W. Franz Cancer Research Center is a world-class research facility located inside the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute at Providence Health & Services in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1993 by Dr. Urba and a team of internationally recognized scientists, the Robert W. Franz Cancer Research Center today garners more than $2 million annually in federal grants and has a research staff of 60. The main area of investigation at the Center is immunotherapy, a specialized field of study focused on triggering the immune system to fight cancer.
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21 Sep 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AGONOX ANNOUNCES ISSUANCE OF U.S. PATENT FOR OX40 LIGAND FUSION PROTEINS AND USE IN CANCER THERAPY
Patent provides additional protection for AgonOx's OX40 agonist platform
PORTLAND, OR September 26, 2011 – AgonOx today announced that the U.S. Patent 7,959,925, “Trimeric OX40 Immunoglobulin Fusion Protein and Methods of Use” was issued recently. “The OX40 Ligand Fusion Protein has shown high potency for enhancing tumor-specific T-cell immunity in preclinical studies, and this patent adds to the extensive protection AgonOx has in place covering other approaches to use OX40 in the fight against cancer,” said Andrew Weinberg, Ph.D., Managing Partner of AgonOx and pioneer in the discovery and development of OX40.
The issued patent covers both a range of compositions of OX40 Ligand Fusion Proteins and the methods for the use of this family of compounds to stimulate tumor-specific T-cell immunity. AgonOx holds exclusive rights to the patent from Providence Cancer Center in Portland, Oregon, where the majority of the discovery, preclinical, and clinical work defining OX40 has been conducted. Coverage of the OX40 Ligand Fusion Protein family adds to AgonOx’s patents covering use of anti-OX40 Antibodies to stimulate tumor-specific T-cell immunity.
“OX40 is emerging as an exciting target in immuno-oncology, with greatly increased interest following the approval by the FDA of Ipilimumab (Yervoy, BMS) this year,” said AgonOx CEO Llew Keltner, M.D., Ph.D. “AgonOx continues to expand the potential approaches to OX40 as a promising mechanism for stimulating specific immune attack on patients’ tumors.”
About OX40
OX40 is a protein transiently expressed on the surface of effector T-cells, but only after activation of the T-cells by immune-stimulating antigens, including tumor antigens. Binding OX40 with either anti-OX40 antibodies or OX40 ligand compositions has been shown to inhibit apoptosis in such T-cells, causing T-cell proliferation, immune attack on tumors, and sometimes very distinct tumor-specific therapeutic responses. Although many approaches to stimulation of T-cell tumor responses have been attempted over the past few decades, OX40 agonists — which uniquely stimulate ongoing responses to antigens — have the promise for both strong patient benefit and minimal side effects. In numerous preclinical studies, the ability of OX40 to stimulate tumor-specific CD4+ and CD8+ (memory) T-cells has been documented. A 30-patient Phase I dose-ranging trial of an anti-OX40 monoclonal antibody verified the preclinical results and demonstrated strong statistically significant correlation between increased T-cell proliferation in patients who did not clinically progress after anti-OX40 treatment. Additional clinical studies of OX40 agonists in patients with prostate cancer are ongoing, and a breast cancer clinical trial will begin soon.
About AgonOx
AgonOx is developing OX40 agonists for use in cancer therapy. Research in the field of T-cell modulation conducted worldwide with OX40 and other agents has demonstrated that the use of T-cell modulating therapies in combination with specific anti-tumor therapies has the potential for yielding dramatic benefits for patients with cancer. AgonOx is focused on the development of OX40 in combination with other promising therapies, and is actively seeking combination therapies for in-licensing or partnering, to augment AgonOx’s OX40 development and pending marketing partnership with a major pharmaceutical company. Combination therapies of interest include cytotoxic agents, other immunologic modifiers, and tumor ablation techniques and devices. AgonOx is a closely held private company.
About Providence Cancer Center
The Robert W. Franz Cancer Research Center is a world-class research facility located inside the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute at Providence Health & Services in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1993 by Dr. Walter Urba and a team of internationally recognized scientists, the Robert W. Franz Cancer Research Center today garners more than $2 million annually in federal grants and has a research staff of 60. The main area of investigation at the Center is immunotherapy, a specialized field of study focused on triggering the immune system to fight cancer.