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news.Advaxis, a biotechnology company, has signed an agreement with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), under which Dr Lawrence Fong from the Department of Medicine and principal investigator of the studies at UCSF, will evaluate several new immunotherapy constructs, in addition to ADXS-PSA, each built on the Advaxis proprietary technology.
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Data generated from this agreement will demonstrate the combination of the unique Advaxis immunotherapy platform, which generates both tumor fighting T cells and reduces tumor protection inside the tumor microenvironment, with targets that have already been shown to be important in effective immunotherapies for prostate cancer.
ADXS-PSA is an immunotherapy that is designed to target the PSA antigen associated with prostate cancer.
By incorporating PSA into the Advaxis live, attenuated vector, Advaxis intends to deliver the PSA antigen, fused to the powerful immunostimulant LLO, directly inside antigen presenting cells that are capable of driving a cellular immune response to PSA expressing cells.
The Advaxis approach is also designed to inhibit the Treg and MDSC cells that contribute to immunologic tolerance of prostate cancer.
Dr Lawrence Fong is a medical oncologist in San Francisco, California and is affiliated with UCSF Medical Center. Dr Fong’s laboratory is dedicated to understanding the interaction between the immune system and cancer.
Dr Fong and his team have identified several tumor targets associated with clinical responses in immunotherapy studies for prostate cancer and will collaborate with Advaxis scientists to adapt these targets to the Advaxis immunotherapy platform.
The constructs may also have activity against other cancers, which could be explored as the prostate cancer program develops further.
Advaxis chief scientific officer Dr Robert Petit noted ADXS-PSA is the company’s first generation prostate cancer immunotherapy construct which it plans to advance to Phase I clinical trials in the first half of 2014.
"We are pleased to be working with Dr. Fong at UCSF to lay the groundwork for a second generation of effective immunotherapies for prostate and, potentially, other cancers.
"This collaboration will further advance our prostate cancer program and demonstrates our commitment to developing immunotherapies for the 1 in 7 men in the U.S. who will be diagnosed with prostate cancer," Dr Petit added.