Medical
Businesswire | July 26, 2023
SQZ Biotechnologies Company announced that Roche has determined that it will not exercise its option for HPV 16 positive solid tumors under the SQZ-APC-HPV program. SQZ Biotechnologies will regain full clinical development and future commercialization rights for its programs targeting HPV 16 positive tumors. The Company intends to explore potential strategic partnerships to support the advancement of its oncology programs and platforms.
The Company has completed a review of its portfolio and highlights the following achievements. SQZ® antigen presenting cells (APC) candidate was well tolerated in a Phase 1 trial and provided a significant survival benefit to a subpopulation of patients with enhanced tumor T cell infiltration. SQZ® enhanced antigen presenting cells (eAPC) candidate has completed enrollment of the highest dose monotherapy cohort in a Phase 1/2 trial, and initial data are anticipated in the second half of 2023. In addition, the low dose monotherapy cohort from the Phase 1 trial utilizing the Company’s Activating Antigen Carriers (AAC) candidate has demonstrated a confirmed complete response in one patient and an overall best response of stable disease in the other two patients. The high dose monotherapy cohort in this trial is currently enrolling, and initial data are anticipated in the fourth quarter of 2023. Finally, development and testing of the Point of Care Manufacturing system continue to advance and could significantly reduce the time and cost of cell therapy manufacturing and potentially make cell therapies more broadly accessible for patients.
“We have made meaningful progress across all our platforms this year and the management team and Board of Directors are enthusiastic about the power of Cell Squeeze® technology and the potential of the Company’s therapeutic programs,” said Howard Bernstein, Interim CEO and Member of the Board of Directors at SQZ. “As we move into the second half of this year, we are committed to assessing all of the Company’s potential strategic alternatives in an effort to advance our programs.”
About SQZ Biotechnologies
SQZ Biotechnologies is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on unlocking the full potential of cell therapies. The Company’s proprietary Cell Squeeze® technology offers the unique ability to deliver multiple biological materials into many patient cell types to engineer what the Company believes can be a broad range of potential therapeutics. The Company’s goal is to create well-tolerated cell therapies that can provide therapeutic benefit for patients and improve the patient experience over existing cell therapy approaches. With production timelines under 24 hours and the opportunity to eliminate preconditioning and lengthy hospital stays, the Company believes its approach could change the way people think about cell therapies.
Read More
Medical, Diagnostics
PRNewswire | August 08, 2023
Astellas Pharma Inc. and Poseida Therapeutics, Inc. announced a strategic investment to support the advancement of Poseida's commitment to redefining cancer cell therapy.
Under the terms of the transaction agreements, Astellas will invest a total of $50 million, including $25 million to acquire 8,333,333 shares of common stock of Poseida (approximately 8.8% of the outstanding common stock of Poseida) at $3.00 per share in a private placement and a one-time $25 million payment for a right of exclusive negotiation and first refusal to license one of Poseida's clinical stage programs: P-MUC1C-ALLO1, an allogeneic CAR-T cell therapy in development for multiple solid tumor indications. In addition, Poseida has granted Astellas a board observer seat, which includes the ability to attend Poseida's scientific advisory board meetings, and certain notice rights related to any potential change of control of Poseida.
Astellas has established the Focus Area Approach for its research and development strategy. One of Astellas' Primary Focuses within the strategy is immuno-oncology. Astellas is committed to developing next-generation immuno-oncology drugs using multi-functional platforms. Its portfolio includes oncolytic viruses, bispecific immune cell engagers, small molecules, and cell therapy platforms.
Poseida is engaged in the research and development of cell and gene therapies for cancer and rare genetic diseases by leveraging its proprietary genetic editing platforms. In oncology, Poseida has a broad pipeline of allogeneic CAR-T cell therapy product candidates for both solid and liquid tumors, including P-MUC1C-ALLO1, which is in Phase 1 development for the treatment of multiple solid tumor indications.
"By leveraging our extensive expertise, experience in cancer biology and unique technologies, we are focused on reinvigorating the immune system's ability to discover, disarm and destroy cancers in more patients. We are pursuing this ambitious goal through innovative and multifunctional modality platforms, using the capabilities at our global R&D sites as well as through partnership with external expert partners," said Adam Pearson, Chief Strategy Officer, Astellas. "We believe that this investment fits strategically with our long-term vision of expanding our capability in immuno-oncology and will ultimately lead to the development of new therapeutics for patients in need of cancer immunotherapy."
"We are excited to enter this strategic relationship with Astellas, a premier biopharmaceutical company that shares our long-term vision that cell and gene therapies represent an exciting growth area for the development of innovative medicines for improving patient care," said Mark Gergen, Poseida's Chief Executive Officer. "This investment further validates the potential of our proprietary genetic engineering technology platform and cell therapy approach, and we look forward to working with Astellas to advance our shared vision and explore future opportunities for collaboration to further unlock that potential."
About P-MUC1C-ALLO1
P-MUC1C-ALLO1 is an allogeneic CAR-T product candidate in Phase 1 development for multiple solid tumor indications. Poseida believes P-MUC1C-ALLO1 has the potential to treat a wide range of solid tumors derived from epithelial cells, such as breast, ovarian, colorectal, lung, pancreatic and renal carcinomas, as well as other cancers expressing a cancer-specific form of the Mucin 1 protein, or MUC1-C. P-MUC1C-ALLO1 is designed to be fully allogeneic, with genetic edits to eliminate or reduce both host-vs-graft and graft-vs-host alloreactivity. Poseida has demonstrated the elimination of tumor cells to undetectable levels in preclinical models of both breast and ovarian cancer. Additional information about the Phase 1 study is available at www.clinicaltrials.gov using identifier: NCT05239143.
About Astellas
Astellas Pharma Inc. is a pharmaceutical company conducting business in more than 70 countries around the world. Astellas is promoting the Focus Area Approach that is designed to identify opportunities for the continuous creation of new drugs to address diseases with high unmet medical needs by focusing on Biology and Modality. Furthermore, Astellas is also looking beyond its foundational Rx focus to create Rx+® healthcare solutions that combine its expertise and knowledge with cutting-edge technology in different fields of external partners. Through these efforts, Astellas stands on the forefront of healthcare change to turn innovative science into VALUE for patients.
About Poseida Therapeutics, Inc.
Poseida Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company advancing differentiated cell and gene therapies with the capacity to cure certain cancers and rare diseases. Poseida's pipeline includes allogeneic CAR-T cell therapy product candidates for both solid and liquid tumors as well as in vivo gene therapy product candidates that address patient populations with high unmet medical need. Poseida's approach to cell and gene therapies is based on its proprietary genetic editing platforms, including its non-viral piggyBac® DNA Delivery System, Cas-CLOVER Site-Specific Gene Editing System and nanoparticle and hybrid gene delivery technologies. Poseida has formed a global strategic collaboration with Roche to unlock the promise of cell therapies for patients.
Read More
MedTech, Medical
Globenewswire | August 09, 2023
Olink Holding AB announced that the Baylor College of Medicine Human Genome Sequencing Center (BCM-HGSC) has selected the Olink Explore platform as a proteomics component of their world-class multiomics offering.
Understanding the complex biological mechanisms of human diseases is essential to identifying effective new therapeutic strategies. The addition of Olink proteomic technology enables a more thorough understanding of the intricate connections between genes, proteins, and diseases that will lead to improved diagnostics, targeted therapies and the advancement of precision and personalized medicine.
“We are immensely pleased to see the Olink Explore HT platform implemented at one of the world’s leading multiomic research centers,“ said Jon Heimer, CEO, Olink Proteomics. “The massive genomic sequencing and automation capabilities of the BCM-HGSC unlocks a unique opportunity for proteogenomic research at scale. We look forward to seeing our tools applied across a broad spectrum of new therapeutic research fields to enhance the existing knowledge of molecular pathways involved in the development, progression, and outcome of disease.”
Other large-scale research programs, like the UK Biobank health study, have demonstrated how Olink Explore enables a more complete understanding of the molecular basis of disease. With the addition of Olink proteomics technology, the BCM-HGSC further strengthens its ability to offer unique multiomics capabilities for large population-scale health studies.
“Technology development and the adoption of new methods remains a priority at the HGSC, and we are excited to incorporate Olink’s technology into our portfolio,” said Richard Gibbs, Ph.D. Director, Human Genome Sequencing Center and Wofford Cain Professor of Molecular & Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine. “The ability to perform high-throughput proteomics opens many possibilities for current and future studies. This technology provides a natural extension from traditional genomic research by providing data that points to the impact of genetic variation on function. A comprehensive, multiomic approach will be needed to determine the mechanism of action of many genetic diseases and is essential for guiding effective prevention and treatment.”
The Olink Explore platform represents the cutting edge in proteomic technology. Olink Explore HT is the company's latest solution for high-throughput proteomics, delivering unmatched specificity, scalability, and simplicity. With a completely reimagined and streamlined workflow, Olink Explore HT allows scientists to accurately measure over 5,300 proteins using only 2µl of sample. By combining Olink PEA technology with an NGS readout of relative protein concentrations each thoroughly validated assay maintains the exceptional standards of specificity and sensitivity that Olink users have come to trust.
AboutOlink Proteomics
Olink Holding AB is a company dedicated to accelerating proteomics together with the scientific community, across multiple disease areas to enable new discoveries and improve the lives of patients. Olink provides a platform of products and services which are deployed across major pharmaceutical companies and leading clinical and academic institutions to deepen the understanding of real-time human biology and drive 21st century healthcare through actionable and impactful science. The Company was founded in 2016 and is well established across Europe, North America and Asia. Olink is headquartered in Uppsala, Sweden.
Read More