Aduro Biotech presented preliminary observations from a case study of a patient with metastatic colorectal cancer treated in Aduro\u2019s ongoing Phase 1 study of its personalized neoantigen-based immunotherapy (pLADD). This Phase 1 proof-of-concept study is designed to evaluate the safety and tolerability of pLADD immunotherapy in adults with metastatic colorectal cancer that is microsatellite stable (MSS). Data were presented at the European Neoantigen Summit held in Amsterdam (April 24-26, 2018).<\/p>\n
The immunological data presented demonstrated that neoantigens isolated and sequenced from the patient\u2019s tissue samples, and engineered into a personalized immunotherapy, induced neoantigen-specific CD8+ T cells undetectable before pLADD treatment started. In addition to adaptive immunity, pLADD induced an innate response exemplified by gamma delta T cells, also thought to be important for successful immunotherapy. The patient\u2019s neoantigens were selected using state-of-the-art algorithm identification technology developed by Aduro\u2019scollaborator, Hanlee Ji, M.D., associate professor of medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlthough early, the immunological data obtained from this case study is encouraging, as it indicates that our pLADDimmunotherapy has the potential to induce a sustained, antigen-specific effect on the immune system,\u201d said Andrea van Elsas, Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Aduro. \u201cWe believe our pLADD approach could offer a differentiated treatment option to patients with MSS colorectal cancer, who represent the vast majority of the colorectal cancer patient population and who have not been responsive to immune checkpoint inhibitors. In addition, these preliminary observations support our plan to combine pLADD with checkpoint inhibitors, which we believe could enhance the overall response in this patient setting. We look forward to reporting additional immunological data from this Phase 1 trial before the end of 2018.\u201d<\/p>\n
Preclinical data presented showed that mouse pLADD strains targeting tumor-specific neoepitopes induced a robust immune response, including induction of cytokines, chemokines, and antigen-specific CD8+ T cells.\u00a0 In preclinical models of pLADD, remodeling of the tumor microenvironment with an increase in the CD8:Treg ratio was observed. The combination of pLADD with an anti-PD-1 antibody led to a sustained immune response and significantly improved efficacy in these mouse tumor models.<\/p>\n