HOLON, Israel, June 5, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --
Compugen Ltd. (NASDAQ: CGEN), a therapeutic discovery company,
today disclosed new data for its COM701 immuno-oncology therapeutic
antibody candidate demonstrating potential for dual- and
triple-combination therapy with antibodies targeting TIGIT and
PD-1. In addition to monotherapy applications, this combination
approach may expand the responsive cancer patient population,
including those who are partially responsive or refractory to PD-1
inhibitors. Furthermore, recent expression data in human tumors
point to the potential of COM701 to treat cancer patients for whom
current PD-1 pathway inhibitors have shown limited efficacy.
The preclinical data was highlighted in a poster presentation at
the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual
Meeting in Chicago, Illinois. The
poster titled "Discovery and Development of COM701, a Therapeutic
Antibody Targeting the Novel Immune Checkpoint PVRIG" is available
at http://www.cgen.com/media-center/publications.
The Company also reported that it held a clinical advisory
meeting in Chicago in anticipation
of initiating COM701 clinical studies next year. Key clinical
physicians in the immuno-oncology space participated in the meeting
that was led by members of Compugen's Scientific Advisory Board,
Prof. Drew Pardoll, of Johns Hopkins University, Prof. Charles Drake, of Columbia
University and Prof Antoni
Ribas, of UCLA.
Anat Cohen-Dayag, PhD, President
and CEO of Compugen stated, "The promising data presented today at
ASCO further demonstrate the clinical and commercial potential of
COM701 for both mono- and combination therapy, including in
combination with our anti-TIGIT drug candidate COM902. It is our
belief that these therapies have the potential to expand the
responsive cancer patient population."
Dr. Cohen-Dayag continued, "Also, we were pleased to host our
first clinical advisory meeting for COM701 with key oncologists in
the immuno-oncology space. The data and discussion further
supported the initiation of clinical trials for this potential
first-in-class therapy."
The poster presented new in vivo data demonstrating that PVRIG
blocking antibodies reduced the growth of tumors in TIGIT deficient
mice, providing further support of the rationale for the clinical
combination of COM701 with TIGIT blockade. In addition, new in
vitro data demonstrate that COM701 can synergistically increase T
cell activation in combination with either anti-TIGIT or anti-PD-1
antibodies. The combination of COM701 with an anti-TIGIT antibody
resulted in equal or greater T cell stimulation than either of
those antibodies in combination with anti-PD-1. Additionally, T
cell activation was further enhanced by the triple combination of
PVRIG/TIGIT/PD-1 blockade when targeting tumor cells with high
PD-L1 expression. This suggests a possible treatment path for
cancer patients whose tumors express PD-L1, including those who are
refractory to anti-PD-1 therapeutics.
In addition, analysis of multiple human solid tumors including
those of lung, kidney, head and neck and endometrial cancers
identified expression of PVRIG and its ligand PVRL2, suggesting
that patients with such cancers could benefit from treatment with
COM701. Also, in certain tumors that were negative for PD-L1
expression, the analysis revealed high expression of PVRL2. This
suggests the potential for COM701 to treat cancers where current
PD-1 pathway inhibitors have shown limited efficacy.
About COM701
COM701 is Compugen's lead therapeutic candidate targeting PVRIG,
a novel B7/CD28-like immune checkpoint target candidate discovered
by Compugen. COM701 is a humanized hybridoma antibody that binds to
PVRIG with high affinity and blocks its interaction with PVRL2.
Blockade of PVRL2 binding by COM701 results in potent, reproducible
enhancement of T cell activation, consistent with the desired
mechanism of action of activating T cells in the tumor
microenvironment to generate anti-tumor immune responses.
Consistent with the placement of PVRIG in the TIGIT axis, COM701
combined with antagonist anti-TIGIT antibodies has an additive
effect on human T cell stimulation, indicating the potential of the
combination to generate enhanced immune response against the
cancer.
About Compugen
Compugen is a leading therapeutic discovery company whose
mission is to utilize its broadly applicable predictive discovery
infrastructure to discover novel drug targets and develop
first-in-class therapeutics. Our current pipeline consists of early
and preclinical stage immuno-oncology programs based on novel drug
targets discovered internally, primarily immune checkpoint and
myeloid protein target candidates. These programs focus on the
development of first-in-class cancer immunotherapy drugs with the
potential to harness the immune system to provide treatment
solutions in areas of unmet medical need in various cancer types
and patient populations, both as monotherapy and in combination
with other drugs. In addition, our pipeline currently includes a
preclinical fusion protein autoimmune product candidate. Compugen's
business model is based on selectively entering into collaborations
for its novel target candidates and related drug product candidates
at various stages of research and development under revenue-sharing
agreements. The Company is headquartered in Israel, with R&D facilities in
Israel and South San Francisco. At
the US facilities, therapeutic monoclonal antibodies are discovered
and developed against the Company's novel drug target candidates.
For additional information, please visit Compugen's corporate
website at http://www.cgen.com.
Forward-Looking Statement
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of
terminology such as "will," "may," "expects," "anticipates,"
"believes," "potential," and "intends," and describe opinions about
possible future events. These forward-looking statements involve
known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual
results, performance or achievements of Compugen to be materially
different from any future results, performance or achievements
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Among
these risks: Compugen's business model is substantially dependent
on entering into collaboration agreements with third parties, and
Compugen may not be successful in generating adequate revenues or
commercializing aspects of its business model. Moreover, the
development and commercialization of therapeutic candidates involve
many inherent risks, including failure to progress to clinical
trials or, if they progress to or enter clinical trials, failure to
receive regulatory approval. These and other factors are more fully
discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of Compugen's most recent
Annual Report on Form 20-F as filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC) as well as other documents that may be
subsequently filed by Compugen from time to time with the SEC. In
addition, any forward-looking statements represent Compugen's views
only as of the date of this release and should not be relied upon
as representing its views as of any subsequent date. Compugen does
not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements
unless required by law.
Company contact:
Susanna Chau
Director, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
Compugen
Email: susannac@cgen.com
Tel: +1(650)263-7001
SOURCE Compugen Ltd.