Agenus Submits Data on AGEN1571 (Anti-ILT2) to AACR and Announces IND Clearance

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Category: Antibodies

Posted on Sunday, April 10, 2022 9:31 AM

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• First Data Presentation on AGEN1571 Shows Strong Adaptive and Innate Immune Responses
• Preclinical data indicates superior performance over sole competitor at clinical stage
• Monotherapy activity and broad combination potential
• Investigational New Drug (IND) Application Approved; clinical trial to start

LEXINGTON, MA, USA I April 08, 2022 I Agenus Inc. (Nasdaq:AGEN), an immuno-oncology company with an extensive portfolio of therapeutic products designed to activate the immune response to cancers and infections, today announced the first presentation of preclinical data from AGEN1571 – a novel anti-ILT2 antibody designed to modulate tumor-associated macrophages, T, NK and NKT cells. These data are presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) to be held April 8-12 in New Orleans, LA.

“The ILT receptor family represents a key suppressor of antitumor immunity that contributes to resistance to CTLA-4 and PD-1-directed therapies.” said Steven O’Day, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Agenus. “Blocking this family of receptors offers the possibility of overcoming this resistance. This approach is validated by the durable clinical responses obtained in PD-1 resistant cancers with an ILT4 antagonist discovered by Agenus and licensed to Merck. AGEN1571 represents our first fully owned clinical stage myeloid targeting agent. »

Highlights of the presentation:

• ILT2 offers greater potential to overcome resistance to approved immunotherapies compared to ILT4. It provides a greater and broader expression profile across immune cell types in the tumor microenvironment.
• AGEN1571 demonstrates superior functional activity compared to the competitor at the clinical stage with:
  • Binding affinity ~10 times higher than all ILT2 isoforms, allowing superior binding to cells expressing low levels of ILT2
  • Complete blockade of ILT2-ligand interactions for more effective immune activation and antitumor therapeutic potential
  • Improved activation of T, NK and NKT cells for better tumor destruction
  • Superior ability to shift myeloid cells to a pro-inflammatory state, which further boosts T and NK cell immunity
  • Higher potency to stimulate endogenous anti-tumor immunity in synergy with anti-tumor antibodies or patient-targeted therapies

• Combinations with botensilimab (Fc-enhanced CTLA-4) and other immuno-oncology agents lead to stronger immune cell activation
• FDA Approved IND Application; clinical trial to start

Presentation details:
Title of abstract: AGEN1571 is a novel high-affinity ILT2 antagonist antibody that promotes adaptive and innate immune responses
Abstract number: 2906 / 21
Session: Therapeutic antibodies 2
Date hour : 12 April 2022, 9:00 – 12:30
Speaker: Olga Udartseva, PhD

The poster presentation can be accessed on the investors section of the Agenus website at https://investor.agenusbio.com/events-and-presentations.

About Agenus

Agenus is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company focused on the discovery and development of therapies that mobilize the body’s immune system to fight cancer. The Company’s vision is to expand patient populations benefiting from cancer immunotherapy by pursuing combination approaches that leverage a broad repertoire of therapeutic antibodies, adoptive cell therapies (through its subsidiary MiNK Therapeutics), adjuvants and proprietary cancer vaccine platforms. The company is equipped with a suite of antibody discovery platforms and a state-of-the-art GMP manufacturing facility with the capability to support clinical programs. Agenus is headquartered in Lexington, MA. For more information, please visit www.agenusbio.com and our Twitter account @agenus_bio. Information that may be important to investors will be regularly posted on our website and on Twitter.

THE SOURCE: Agenus