Affimed Presents Preclinical Data on AFM24 and AFM26 at EACR-AACR-SIC 2017
June 27 2017 - 5:01AM
Heidelberg, Germany, June 27, 2017 - Affimed
N.V. (Nasdaq: AFMD), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company
focused on discovering and developing highly targeted cancer
immunotherapies, announced today the presentation of preclinical
data for the Company's AFM24 and AFM26 programs at the
EACR-AACR-SIC 2017 Special Conference in Florence, Italy.
"With our NK-cell engagers AFM24 and AFM26 we
are pursuing two preclinical programs which we believe are ideally
suited to exploit NK-cell mediated cytotoxicity to fight cancer,"
said Dr. Martin Treder, Chief Scientific Officer of Affimed. "Our
data for both programs show a well-differentiated profile from
competitor products, addressing the need for higher efficacy and
better safety."
AFM24 and AFM26 are two first-in-class
tetravalent, bispecific NK-cell engagers targeting CD16A, a
dominant activating receptor on NK-cells. In addition, AFM24
targets EGFR, while AFM26 binds to BCMA. Corroborating the
Company's earlier data, the studies presented at EACR-AACR-SIC 2017
provided further evidence of favorable safety profiles for both
NK-cell engagers and also confirmed their ability to potently and
effectively lyse tumor cells, even those with very low target
expression. Furthermore, the high affinity to CD16A on NK-cells,
resulting in long cell retention binding to NK-cells, and the
minimal influence of serum IgG on tumor cell lysis are important
differentiating factors of Affimed's NK-cell platform compared to
IgG-based monoclonal antibodies (mAbs).
In detail, AFM24 was shown to be distinguished
from cetuximab in vitro and in vivo through higher potency at both
high and low EGFR expression levels and in RAS mutant cells, while
offering a more favorable safety profile. Single and repeat dose
toxicology studies in cynomolgus monkeys demonstrated that AFM24
was well-tolerated at high doses. Further differentiating AFM24
from other therapies, no evidence of skin toxicity, a side effect
commonly seen for other anti-EGFR antibodies and for tyrosine
kinase inhibitors, was observed.
In addition, the Company presented further data
highlighting the preclinical progress of AFM26. The NK-cell engager
was able to elicit efficient tumor cell lysis in both cell lines
and primary cells, even at very low BCMA expression levels. In
addition, the amount of inflammatory cytokines released in vitro by
cells treated with AFM26 was markedly lower than those of cells
treated with a BCMA/CD3 T-cell engager. Furthermore, in contrast to
approved mAb therapies such as daratumumab and elotuzumab, AFM26
did not induce NK-cell depletion in vitro.
Taken together, the results presented at
EACR-AACR-SIC 2017 support the therapeutic rationale of redirecting
NK-cells to tumors through bispecific tetravalent NK-cell engagers,
which offers a novel mode of action addressing limitations of other
therapies.
About Affimed N.V.
Affimed (Nasdaq: AFMD) engineers targeted
immunotherapies, seeking to cure patients by harnessing the power
of innate and adaptive immunity (NK- and T-cells). We are
developing single and combination therapies to treat cancers and
other life-threatening diseases. For more information, please visit
www.affimed.com.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This press release contains forward-looking
statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact
are forward-looking statements, which are often indicated by terms
such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect,"
"goal," "intend," "look forward to", "may," "plan," "potential,"
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expressions. Forward-looking statements appear in a number of
places throughout this release and include statements regarding our
intentions, beliefs, projections, outlook, analyses and current
expectations concerning, among other things, our ongoing and
planned preclinical development and clinical trials, our
collaborations and development of our products in combination with
other therapies, the timing of and our ability to make regulatory
filings and obtain and maintain regulatory approvals for our
product candidates our intellectual property position, our
collaboration activities, our ability to develop commercial
functions, expectations regarding clinical trial data, our results
of operations, cash needs, financial condition, liquidity,
prospects, future transactions, growth and strategies, the industry
in which we operate, the trends that may affect the industry or us
and the risks uncertainties and other factors described under the
heading "Risk Factors" in Affimed's filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. Given these risks, uncertainties and other
factors, you should not place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements, and we assume no obligation to update
these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes
available in the future.
IR Contact:
Caroline Stewart, Head IRPhone: +1 347394 6793E-Mail:
IR@affimed.com or c.stewart@affimed.com
Media Contact:
Anca Alexandru, Head of Communications, EU IRPhone: +49 6221
64793341E-Mail: a.alexandru@affimed.com
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