Alligator Bioscience announced that preclinical data on its agonist anti-CD40 antibody mitazalimab has been published in the scientific journal Cancer Immunology, Immunotherapy.
The published data show that mitazalimab activates dendritic cells and tumor-reactive T cells resulting in enhanced anti-tumor efficacy in combination with a model cancer vaccine.
“A publication in a prominent peer-reviewed journal such as Cancer Immunology, Immunotherapy is very encouraging and validates our findings. These data further highlight the strong potential for mitazalimab to be combined with other therapies, including chemotherapies, immune checkpoint inhibitors and cancer vaccines,” said Malin Carlsson, interim CEO at Alligator.
A summary of the findings was presented at the World Immunotherapy Congress 2021 on March 31, 2021, by Alligator’s CSO, Peter Ellmark.
Mitazalimab is Alligator’s most advanced drug candidate for immunotherapy and is designed for the treatment of metastatic cancers, including pancreatic cancer. A phase II study, OPTIMIZE-1, in patients with pancreatic cancer is under preparation. The Phase II study is an open-label, multicenter study to assess the clinical efficacy of mitazalimab as a first-line therapy combined with chemotherapy (mFOLFIRINOX). It will be conducted at several European medical centers and inclusion of the first patient is planned for the first half of 2021.
