Pharmaceutical Technology

SparX and Arovella partner to develop CAR-iNKT cell therapy

SparX’s monoclonal antibody was used to develop the Claudin 18.2 tumour-specific antigen targeting CAR-iNKT cell therapy.

SparX Group and Arovella Therapeutics have collaborated on the development of a chimeric antigen receptor invariant natural killer T (CAR-iNKT) cell therapy for the treatment of solid tumours.

The CLDN18.2-CAR-iNKT cells were designed using SparX’s monoclonal antibody, SPX-101, which targets the Claudin 18.2 (CLDN18.2) tumour-specific antigen. SPX-101 was designed using the company’s Sailing discovery platform to target CLDN18.2, which is expressed in gastric cancer and other forms of solid tumours.

CAR-T cell therapies have risen in prominence in recent years, with multiple cell therapies being approved for use. GlobalData forecasts the CAR-T cell market to be worth around $25bn in 2028, with more than 100 different CAR-T therapies currently in development.

One of the approved CAR-T cell therapies, Gilead’s Yescarta (axicabtagene ciloleucel), pulled in $380m in sales in Q2 2023, as per the company’s Q2 financials. It was first approved for the treatment of relapsed/refractory diffuse large B cell lymphoma but has since been approved for other indications.

GlobalData is the parent company of Pharmaceutical Technology.

iNKT cells are a specialised subset of T-cells that have tissue infiltration capabilities along with the ability to suppress tumour cells including myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) and tumour-associated macrophages (TAMs).

iNKT cell therapies could have a superior safety profile compared with the alternative T cell therapies, with a reduced propensity for cytokine release syndrome, based on a 10 October press release.

Arovella has raised $7.9m in the past year from two oversubscribed placements and a share purchase plan, based on the company’s June 2023 annual report. The funds are expected to advance the clinical development of ALA-101 for the treatment of CD19-positive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

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