CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Compass Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company targeting the human immune synapse with a new generation of monoclonal and multispecific antibody therapeutics, today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued three U.S. patents covering certain anti-CD137 antibodies, including its lead therapeutic candidate, CTX-471.
CTX-471 is a fully human antibody that binds and activates a unique epitope of the co-stimulatory receptor CD137 (4-1BB) expressed on T- and NK-cells. In preclinical studies, CTX-471 demonstrates potent monotherapy activity in multiple syngeneic tumor models, including curative efficacy against very large, established tumors where other validated IO antibodies, such as antibodies targeting PD-1, PD-L1, CTLA-4 and OX40 have no or minimal effect. CTX-471 efficacy is associated with a comprehensive reprogramming of the tumor microenvironment, increasing CD8+ T-cell infiltration and penetration while reducing T-cell exhaustion. Unlike other clinical and preclinical CD137 antibodies, CTX-471 shows no evidence of hepatic toxicity in both mice and non-human primates, supporting the potential for a wide therapeutic window in patients.
The CTX-471 Phase 1 study is now open. For more information: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03881488
“We’re truly excited about the promise CTX-471 holds for patients with cancer and we’re delighted to secure these patents, which affirm the novelty of our approach,” said Thomas Schuetz, MD, PhD, the scientific founder and chief executive officer of Compass. “The intellectual property portfolio we have generated at Compass provides an excellent foundation for us to build on as we continue to advance our pipeline of innovative therapeutic candidates in oncology and autoimmunity.”
The newly issued patents are: U.S. Patent No. 10,279,038, which covers the composition of CTX-471; and U.S. Patent Nos. 10,279,039 and 10,279,040, which cover the use of CTX-471 in methods for treating cancer and inducing or enhancing an anti-tumor immune response, respectively. The base term for each patent extends until July of 2038. Additional patent filings by Compass related to CTX-471 are under review.
About Compass Therapeutics
Compass Therapeutics is a
clinical-stage biotechnology company targeting the immune synapse with a
new generation of monoclonal and multispecific antibody therapeutics.
Compass has broadly drugged the immune system by generating epitopically
diverse antibody panels to more than 40 targets across all immune cell
types and is leveraging its proprietary StitchMabsTM and
common light-chain based multispecific platforms to empirically identify
combinations and multispecifics with optimized activity. The company’s
lead product candidate, CTX-471, is a fully human agonistic antibody of
CD137, which is in a Phase 1 study in patients with inadequate responses
to PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitors. Compass is also progressing several
pre-clinical assets including a novel class of NK-cell engaging
bispecifics targeting NKp30 and multiple bispecific checkpoint programs.
The company’s offices and labs are based in Kendall Square in Cambridge,
Mass.
