0000000000177743

AUTHOR

Doreen Schwarck-kokarakis

Abstract CT034: A first-in-human phase I/II clinical trial assessing novel mRNA-lipoplex nanoparticles for potent melanoma immunotherapy

Abstract Therapeutic vaccination with tumor antigen-encoding RNAs by local administration is currently being successfully employed in various clinical trials. Advancing from local to more efficient systemic targeting of antigen-presenting cells (APCs), we have developed pioneering RNA-lipoplex (RNA(LIP)) immunotherapeutics for intravenous application based on the employment of well-known lipid carriers without the need for functionalization of particles with molecular ligands. The novel RNA(LIP) formulation has been engineered to preserve RNA integrity after intravenous injection and physicochemically optimized for efficient uptake and expression of the encoded antigen by APCs in various ly…

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Abstract CT032: A first-in-human phase I/II clinical trial assessing novel mRNA-lipoplex nanoparticles for potent cancer immunotherapy in patients with malignant melanoma

Abstract Immunotherapeutic approaches have evolved as promising and valid alternatives to available conventional cancer treatments. Amongst others, vaccination with tumor antigen-encoding RNAs by local administration is currently successfully employed in various clinical trials. To allow for a more efficient targeting of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and to overcome potential technical challenges associated with local administration, we have developed a novel RNA immunotherapeutic for systemic application based on a fixed set of four liposome complexed RNA drug products (RNA(LIP)), each encoding one shared melanoma-associated antigen. The novel RNA(LIP) formulation was engineered (i) to p…

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A shared tumor-antigen RNA-lipoplex vaccine with/without anti-PD1 in patients with checkpoint-inhibition experienced melanoma.

3136 Background: Cancer vaccines are considered unsuitable for patients with advanced tumours and have not been clinically successful. Methods: Lipo-MERIT is an ongoing phase 1/2 trial (NCT02410733) with melanoma FixVac, a liposomal RNA vaccine targeting four non-mutant shared tumour-associated antigens (TAAs) (MAGE-A3, NY-ESO-1, tyrosinase, TPTE). Patients with stage IIIB-C and IV melanoma are eligible. The trial comprises 7 dose escalation and 3 dose expansion cohorts, the latter with FixVac alone or combined with anti-PD1. Eight doses of FixVac are administered i.v. weekly/bi-weekly followed by optional continued monthly treatment. This abstract summarizes the findings of an exploratory…

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Abstract CT156: A first-in-human phase I/II clinical trial assessing novel mRNA-lipoplex nanoparticles encoding shared tumor antigens for immunotherapy of malignant melanoma

Abstract Therapeutic vaccination with tumor antigen-encoding RNAs is being investigated in various clinical trials. Typically, the RNA vaccine is administered intradermally, subcutaneously or intranodally with the intention to get expression of the encoded antigens in local antigen-presenting cells (APCs). We have developed a novel class of RNA-lipoplex (RNA(LIP)) immunotherapeutics for intravenous application, which allow systemic targeting of APCs. RNA(LIP) is a novel nanoparticulate formulation of lipid-complexed mRNA which selectively delivers the functional mRNA to APCs in lymphoid compartments body-wide for efficient mRNA uptake and expression of the encoded antigen by APCs. Moreover,…

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549 An RNA-lipoplex (RNA-LPX) vaccine demonstrates strong immunogenicity and promising clinical activity in a Phase I trial in cutaneous melanoma patients with no evidence of disease at trial inclusion

BackgroundLipo-MERIT is an ongoing, first-in-human, open-label, dose-escalation Phase I trial investigating safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of BNT111 in patients with advanced melanoma. BNT111 is an RNA-LPX vaccine targeting the melanoma tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) New York esophageal squamous cell carcinoma 1 (NY-ESO-1), tyrosinase, melanoma-associated antigen 3 (MAGE-A3), and transmembrane phosphatase with tensin homology (TPTE). A previous exploratory interim analysis showed that BNT111, alone or combined with immune checkpoint inhibition (CPI), has a favorable adverse event (AE) profile, gives rise to antigen-specific T-cell responses and induces durable objective responses…

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Abstract CT201: The Mutanome Engineered RNA Immuno-Therapy (MERIT) project

Abstract The Mutanome Engineered RNA Immuno-Therapy (MERIT) consortium will clinically and industrially validate a pioneering RNA-based immunotherapy concept that targets individual tumor antigens and tumor-specific mutations in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients. This biomarker-guided, personalized therapy is a collaborative effort of five partners from academia and industry and is funded by the European Commission's FP7 and led by BioNTech AG. TNBC is an aggressive, molecularly heterogeneous cancer that accounts for 20% of all breast cancer patients. The 5-year survival rate is less than 80%. The molecular heterogeneity across TNBCs results in a lack of common targetable molecu…

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