• Presentation of preclinical data for AB-101, a clinical-stage, ADCC-enhancer, allogeneic, off-the-shelf NK cell therapy candidate developed with Artiva’s AlloNKTM Platform
  • Data highlights the optimized cell profile of AB-101 and combination data with monoclonal antibodies rituximab, obinutuzumab, cetuximab, and trastuzumab

SAN DIEGO, CA, USA I November 10, 2022 IArtiva Biotherapeutics, Inc., a clinical stage company whose mission is to deliver highly effective, off-the-shelf, allogeneic natural killer (NK) cell-based therapies that are safe and accessible to cancer patients, announced today the presentation of activity and efficacy preclinical data for AB-101 with several combinations of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies in multiple preclinical models of cancer. The data were presented at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) 37TH Annual Meeting in Boston.

“These data provide additional support for the use of AB-101 as a highly scaled, off-the-shelf, ADCC-enhancing NK cell product candidate with optimized cellular profile but without the need for genetic modification,” said Peter Flynn, Ph.D., cofounder and Chief Operating Officer of Artiva. “Specifically, these data support the use of AB-101 to enhance ADCC activity when combined with antibodies such as Rituxan®, Gazyva®, Erbitux® and Herceptin®, highlighting the broad therapeutic potential of AB-101.”

The data presented highlight the use of Artiva’s AlloNKTM platform to generate NK cells with high and consistent expression of the high affinity variant of the receptor CD16 as well as other receptors involved in anti-tumor activity including NKG2D, DNAM-1, NKp30, and NKp46, all without the requirement to engineer the underlying NK cells. The resulting cryopreserved, off-the-shelf cell therapy candidate AB-101 combined with therapeutic monoclonal antibodies was seen to drive anti-tumor cell activity in a variety of solid tumor and hematopoietic model systems. Artiva is conducting a Phase 1/2 clinical trial (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04673617) to assess the safety and clinical activity of AB-101 alone and in combination with the anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, rituximab. Artiva is also developing a combination therapy comprised of AB-101 and Affimed N.V.’s Innate Cell Engager AFM13 for treatment of patients with relapsed/refractory CD30-positive lymphomas.

Details of the presentation are as follows:

Title: Evaluation of AB-101, an Allogeneic Cord Blood-derived Natural Killer (NK) Cell Therapy, as an ADCC Enhancer in Hematologic and Solid Tumors
Poster Number: 306
Date: Friday, November 11
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET
Location: Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in Hall C

The abstract is available on the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer website: https://jitc.bmj.com/content/10/Suppl_2/A321. The poster is available for viewing by SITC attendees on the SITC virtual platform: https://2022.sitc.showcare.io/wp-login.php.

About AB-101

AB-101 is a cord blood-derived, allogeneic, cryopreserved, ADCC-enhancing NK cell therapy candidate for use in combination with monoclonal antibodies or innate-cell engagers. Artiva selects cord blood units with the high affinity variant of the receptor CD16 and a KIR-B haplotype for enhanced product activity. Artiva can generate thousands of doses of pure, cryopreserved, infusion-ready NK cells from a single umbilical cord blood unit while retaining the high and consistent expression of CD16 without the need for engineering. Artiva is conducting a Phase 1/2 multicenter clinical trial (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04673617) to assess the safety and clinical activity of AB-101 alone and in combination with the anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, rituximab, in patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell-non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) who have progressed beyond two or more prior lines of therapy. Artiva is also developing a combination therapy comprised of AB-101 and Affimed N.V.’s Innate Cell Engager AFM13 for treatment of patients with relapsed/refractory CD30-positive lymphomas.

About Artiva Biotherapeutics

Artiva’s mission is to deliver highly effective, off-the-shelf, allogeneic NK cell-based therapies utilizing our Manufacturing-First approach, that are safe and accessible to cancer patients. Artiva’s pipeline includes AB-101, an ADCC enhancer NK-cell therapy candidate for use in combination with monoclonal antibodies or innate-cell engagers. Artiva is currently advancing a Phase 1/2 clinical trial of AB-101 in combination with rituximab for the treatment of relapsed or refractory B-cell lymphomas. Artiva’s pipeline also includes AB-201, an anti-HER2 CAR-NK cell therapy candidate for the treatment of HER2-overexpressing tumors, such as breast, gastric, and bladder cancers, and for which an IND has been allowed by FDA, and a pipeline of CAR-NK candidates targeting both solid and hematopoietic cancers. Artiva has entered into therapeutic NK cell collaborations with Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. and with Affimed GmbH. Artiva’s AlloNK™ platform incorporates cell expansion, activation, and engineering technology developed by Artiva’s strategic partner, GC Cell Corporation, a member of the GC family of companies, a leading healthcare company in Korea. Artiva is headquartered in San Diego. For more information, visit www.artivabio.com.

SOURCE: Artiva Biotherapeutics