Elicio’s cancer vaccine triggers broad anti-tumor immunity
Trial data show ELI 002 7P can attack proteins across immune system
ELI-002 7P, an experimental anticancer vaccine designed to induce the immune system to attack a specific cancer protein, can also trigger the immune system to attack other cancer proteins that aren’t specifically included in the vaccine, according to new data from an ongoing Phase 2 clinical trial.
“Induction of broad anti-tumor immunity may enhance the effectiveness of ELI-002 7P by expanding immune recognition across combinations of [cancer proteins targeted by the immune system], supporting more personalized and durable clinical responses,” Robert Connelly, CEO of Elicio Therapeutics, the vaccine’s developer, said in a company press release.
ELI-002 7P is designed to trigger the immune system to attack a mutated form of the protein KRAS, which contributes to abnormal cell growth in many tumors. A Phase 2 study dubbed AMPLIFY-7P (NCT05726864) is testing the vaccine in adults with pancreatic cancer that carries a KRAS mutation. In contrast to other vaccine-based approaches that must be tailored for each individual, ELI-002 7P is an off-the-shelf, ready-to-use solution.
Activating T-cells
T-cells are immune cells that play key roles in fighting cancer and responding to vaccines. Each T-cell is equipped with a specialized receptor that binds to a single molecular target, known as an antigen. With ELI-002 7P, the goal is to activate T-cells that have receptors that bind to the mutated KRAS protein, causing them to attack and kill cancer cells expressing the mutated protein. When that happens, other immune cells will sift through the remains of the destroyed cancer cell. They may identify other cancer-specific mutant proteins, known as neoantigens, that they can present to T-cells, triggering the expansion of additional T-cells that will target sites beyond KRAS.
Researchers evaluated a subset of 15 patients in the AMPLIFY-7P trial to look for evidence of T-cells targeting cancer-specific neoantigens. These 15 people were selected because they had sufficient blood samples and tumor samples available, allowing researchers to identify other mutated proteins in the tumor cells and then look for expansions of T-cells targeting those proteins. The scientists identified neoantigen-targeting T-cells in 13 of the 15 patients evaluated.
“We are extremely pleased to observe induction of personalized neoantigen-specific T cell responses in a significant majority of assessed Phase 2 patients, suggesting that ELI-002 7P, Elicio’s off-the-shelf targeted immunotherapy candidate, has the potential to generate broad tumor-specific immunity targeting both driver mKRAS antigens and personalized neoantigens,” Connelly said.
The Phase 2 data are overall consistent with the promising findings seen in previous Phase 1 testing in adults with pancreatic cancer and other KRAS-mutated solid tumors, Connelly said.
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