Alloplex Biotherapeutics announces its participation in the Cancer Progress Meeting to be held virtually on May 5-6, 2020. Alloplex CEO Dr. Frank Borriello take part in a panel discussion to be held Tuesday, May 5 at 10:15 – 11:30 entitled Paradigm-shifting Platforms: Taking Immuno-Oncology to the Next Level, moderated by Jeffrey M. Bockman, PhD, EVP, Oncology Practice Head, Cello Health BioConsulting. The meeting is sponsored by Cello Health BioConsulting (previously Defined Health).
SUPLEXA cells are anti-tumor effector cells derived from the differential and activation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) through an ex vivostimulation protocol. The protocol involves coincubation of PBMC with a genetically engineered tumor cell line (ENLIST cells) to stably express a highly curated set of immunomodulators to activate complementary immune cell subsets. SUPLEXA cells are comprised of multiple cell types, with many known to possess anti-tumor activity such as natural killer (NK), TCR-gd positive T cells, cytotoxic CD8 positive T lymphocytes (CTL), as well as additional minor populations. Hence SUPLEXA therapy employs multiple mechanisms of action and represents an orthogonal approach to anti-tumor cytolysis. The broad anti-tumor cytolytic activity of SUPLEXA cells is specific, with no observable effects on normal naïve blood cells from either the same (autologous) or different individuals (allogeneic).
The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic led to the realization that ENLIST cells can also be used as the core of a vaccine platform, since the ENLIST cells act as a potent adjuvant. Hence, The LYSAVAX-CoV-2 vaccine is comprised of ENLIST cells that provide adjuvant function, combined with another cell line engineered to express antigens specific to the target pathogen – in this case, 5 proteins encoded by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This cellular vaccine is both simple to produce and can be lyophilized, thus removing the restrictive logistical costs of cold-chain requirements. If development proceeds according to plan. Animal data will be emerging over the next 2 months and a phase 1 vaccine trial could begin as early as 4Q2020.
Alloplex Biotherapeutics is a privately held Boston-based cellular therapeutics company founded in 2016 by its CEO Dr. Frank Borriello, MD, PhD. Dr. Borriello started his career as an academic immunologist at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital (Harvard) and transitioned to the pharmaceutical industry in 1999 where he held positions of increasing responsibility, primarily in the Search and Evaluation component of Business Development. He has held positions at Wyeth, BBBiotech, Millennium, Takeda, Shire and his last position, prior to founding Alloplex, was at Baxalta where he served as VP and Head of Search and Evaluation, before its acquisition by Shire in 2016.
Ms. Ashley Zajdel