0000000000465590

AUTHOR

Rita Mitnacht-kraus

Characterization of zolbetuximab in pancreatic cancer models

ABSTRACT In healthy tissue, the tight junction protein Claudin 18.2 (CLDN18.2) is present only in the gastric mucosa. Upon malignant transformation of gastric epithelial tissue, perturbations in cell polarity lead to cell surface exposure of CLDN18.2 epitopes. Moreover, CLDN18.2 is aberrantly expressed in malignancies of several other organs, such as pancreatic cancer (PC). A monoclonal antibody, zolbetuximab (formerly known as IMAB362), has been generated against CLDN18.2. In a phase 2 clinical trial (FAST: NCT01630083), zolbetuximab in conjunction with chemotherapy prolonged overall and progression-free survival over chemotherapy alone and improved quality of life. In this study, the mech…

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A placenta-specific gene ectopically activated in many human cancers is essentially involved in malignant cell processes.

Abstract The identification and functional characterization of tumor-specific genes is a prerequisite for the development of targeted cancer therapies. Using an integrated data mining and experimental validation approach for the discovery of new targets for antibody therapy of cancer, we identified PLAC1. PLAC1 is a placenta-specific gene with no detectable expression in any other normal human tissue. However, it is frequently aberrantly activated and highly expressed in a variety of tumor types, in particular breast cancer. RNAi-mediated silencing of PLAC1 in MCF-7 and BT-549 breast cancer cells profoundly impairs motility, migration, and invasion and induces a G1-S cell cycle block with n…

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Abstract 882: The anti-claudin 6 antibody, IMAB027, induces antibody-dependent cellular and complement-dependent cytotoxicity in claudin 6-expressing cancer cells

Abstract Background Claudin 6 (CLDN6) is a tight junction membrane protein whose expression in normal tissue is confined to embryonic cells, but aberrantly expressed in various human cancer types, including some with a high medical need (eg, ovarian and uterine cancers). This tumor-specific expression in adult organs makes CLDN6 an attractive drug target; as such, IMAB027, an anti-CLDN6 monoclonal antibody (mAb), was developed. This report describes the preclinical characteristics of IMAB027. Methods IMAB027 was generated by hybridoma technology; the discovery process was set up so that mAbs that were good binders as well as inducers of the immune effector mechanisms of antibody-dependent c…

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Abstract 2903: IMAB362, a novel first-in-class monoclonal antibody for treatment of pancreatic cancer

Abstract Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), the most frequent subtype (>80%) of pancreatic cancer (PC) is characterized by a generally lethal progress within a short period of time after primary diagnosis. Despite high efforts, the treatment options are very limited and mainly of palliative nature. Therefore, we investigated whether IMAB362 might represent a potential treatment option in this patient population. IMAB362 is a highly potent and tumor-cell selective therapeutic antibody which is currently in clinical development in gastro-esophageal cancer (in phase II and IIb trials). IMAB362 is directed against the tight junction molecule CLDN18.2, a proliferation-promoting tran…

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