7:30 am Morning Check-in & Light Breakfast

Chair’s Opening Remarks

  • Pavel Khrimian Co-founder & Cheif Business Officer, DEKA Biosciences

Maximizing Novel Cytokine Approaches to Unlock New Therapeutic Potential

8:50 am Engineering Lymph-node Targeted IL-35 to Suppress Inflammation & Autoimmune Diseases

  • Jun Ishihara Assistant Professor & Lecturer, Imperial College London

Synopsis

  • Outlining challenges in production of IL-35, a strong multi-pathway anti-inflammatory cytokine
  • Utilizing computational structural analyses to identify the intracellular binding site of IL35, succeeding large-scale production by mammalian cells
  • Engineering lymph-node targeted IL-35, which achieves therapeutic effects in rheumatoid arthritis and directly suppresses activated immune cells

9:20 am Immunotherapy Analysis With ELISpot & FluoroSpot: Higher Sensitivity, Higher Precision

Synopsis

  • Outlining ELISpot, an immunoassay used to quantify cytokine-secreting cells and FluoroSpot, the multiplex-version of the same assay
  • Revealing how these sensitive sandwich assays target cytokines secreted by cells, capturing by specific antibodies immediately after secretion and throughout the stimulation process
  • Exploring how these assays can be used to observe functional immune responses when developing immunotherapy strategies

9:30 am INHALAMBDA: Modulating Host Immunity in The Airways With Interferon Lambda Encoding mRNA

  • Christian Plank Managing Director, Chief Scientific & Technology Officer, Ethris

Synopsis

  • Using Stabilised NanoParticle (SNaP) LNP platform to locally administer the drug to the lungs through inhalation or nasal spray
  • Inducing an innate immune defence response in the mucosa at virus entry sites and inhibiting viral replication through extraordinarily stable lipidoid formulation of mRNDA
  • Presenting preclinical results of antiviral efficacy of mRNA encoded IFN-lambda and Evaluating the safety, tolerability, and target engagement of the candidate in healthy participants for the treatment and prophylaxis of respiratory viral infections

10:00 am Harnessing Tissue Specific Activation of Inducible Cytokines for Treatment of Oncology and Autoimmunity

Synopsis

Outlining Werewolf Therapeutics PREDATOR™ technology

Exploring how technology takes advantage of protease selective linkers

Rendering biologically potent cytokines inactive in the periphery but allow activation in the disease target tissue of interest

10:30 am Networking & Morning Break

Cytokines as Combination Therapies to Improve Clinical Efficacy & Enhance Treatment Response

11:00 am Emerging Learnings From Pre-Clinical Combinations of Tumor-Activated Cytokines With Other Immune-oncology Agents

  • Uli Bialucha Chief Scientific Officer, Xilio Therapeutics Inc.

Synopsis

  • Revealing the scientific rationale for using cytokines in combination
  • Addressing challenges in combining systemically active cytokines
  • Exploring Pre-clinical data supporting use of Xilio’s tumor-activated cytokines in combination with other IO agents

11:30 am Exploring Nemvaleukin Alfa Monotherapy & in Combination With Pembrolizumab in Patients With Advanced Solid Tumors

Synopsis

  • Outlining nemvaleukin as a novel engineered cytokine
  • Revealing the design to selectively bind to intermediate-affinity interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2R) for preferential activation and expansion of tumor-killing CD8+ T cells and natural
  • killer (NK) cells, with minimal expansion of regulatory T cells (Tregs)
  • Discussing the potential to reduce native IL-2’s toxicities, thus allowing greater tolerability and efficacy than other IL-2 molecules have shown in the past

12:00 pm Combining DK210 (CD20) With BiTE’s to Block Cytokine Release Syndrome

Synopsis

  • Combining anti-CD19 BiTE’s in vitro dramatically enhances T cell cytolysis of tumors when combined with as low as 0.1 ng/mL BiTE concentrations
  • Blunting BiTE mediated cytokine release syndrome
  • Enhancing tumor responses while suppressing CRS, suggesting DK210 (tumor target) may represent a potent combination partner with BiTE platforms 

12:30 pm Unleashing CD122+ Natural Killer Cell Precursors for Potent Anti-Leukemia Responses With Advanced Engineered Immunocytokine IL-2 Formulations

  • Carsten Krieg Assistant Professor, Medical University of South Carolina

Synopsis

  • Exploring mechanisms of immune stimulations
  • Outlining PKPD data

1:00 pm Lunch Break & Networking

Supercharging Cytokine Delivery for Enhanced Specificity & Improved Efficacy

2:00 pm Ionizable Lipid Optimization for LNP-Mediated mRNA Delivery to Enhance Biological Performance

Synopsis

  • Introducing lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) for the delivery of nucleic acids, with a focus on the role of the amino (ionizable) lipid component
  • Outlining medicinal chemistry strategies for optimizing lipid/LNP physical properties, pharmacokinetics, and biological performance
  • Utilizing computational modelling to guide the design of improved delivery vehicles for mRNA

2:30 pm Encapsulation of IL-12 With an Ultra pH-sensitive Tumor Delivery Platform to Improve Tolerability & Promotes Antitumor Response

  • Tian Zhao Vice President - Research & Development, OncoNano

Synopsis

  • Overcoming narrow therapeutic indexes like IL-12 through targeted delivery
  • Using ON-BOARD ultra-pH sensitive micelles to encapsulate IL-12 for safe delivery to tumor
  • The ON-BOARD micelle’s tumor specificity has been clinically validated by pegsitacianine an intraoperative cancer imaging agent based on the same micelle technology

3:00 pm Developing Cell-anchored Cytokines for Immunotherapy

Synopsis

  • Reviewing of cytokine anchoring strategies to ECM, biomaterials, and cells
  • Uncovering mechanism of action of anchored cytokines to produce abscopal responses
  • Outlining targeting approaches

3:30 pm Afternoon Break & Networking

Unlocking Novel Technologies to Transform Your Development

4:00 pm Roundtables: Exploring Novel Technologies From Discovery Through to the Clinic to Ensure Success of Your Molecule

Synopsis

Using predictive computational models to identify treatment responders/non-responders

Assessing drug properties and predict pharmacokinetics, optimize formulations

Optimizing clinical trial design

Leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance production and manufacturing of your molecule

4:30 pm Chair’s Closing Remarks

  • Pavel Khrimian Co-founder & Cheif Business Officer, DEKA Biosciences

4:40 pm End of Conference

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