Context Therapeutics Nominates CTIM-76 Bispecific Antibody Candidate to Develop Treatment for Claudin 6-Positive Solid Tumors
CLDN6 is differentially expressed on cancer cells with no or very low expression in normal, healthy tissue. CLDN6-enriched cancers include ovarian, endometrial, testicular, and gastric, among others. With the potential to reach a large patient population and selective expression on cancer cells, CLDN6 has emerged as an exciting drug target.
Context’s lead candidate, CTIM-76, is a CLDN6 x CD3 bispecific antibody that incorporates a highly selective CLDN6 binding arm and a CD3 binding single-chain Fv domain in an IgG format with a silenced Fc that is designed to be functionally monovalent to avoid aberrant T-cell activation and to enhance the safety profile. Research has demonstrated that CTIM-76 is potent with specific lysis of CLDN6+ cancer cells over normal cells and can activate cytotoxic T cells without concomitant activation of free cytokines – critical determinants of immunotherapy safety and activity. Preclinical studies suggest the potential for convenient dosing with low immunogenicity risk and manufacturing can be scalable to address the significant number of patients who are potentially eligible for CTIM-76 therapy.
“This year has been marked by several exciting and significant milestones for Context, culminating in naming our lead CLDN6 clinical development candidate, CTIM-76, a bispecific antibody showing high selectivity for CLDN6,” said Martin Lehr, CEO of Context Therapeutics. “We selected this bispecific based on the specificity which suggests its potential to address the need for potent therapeutic modalities for cancer without compromising patient safety. With the selection of CTIM-76 as our lead CLDN6 candidate, we are well-positioned to rapidly advance our clinical development plan in CLDN6-positive tumors including, but not limited to, ovarian cancer. We have initiated IND-enabling studies and expect to submit our Investigational New Drug Application (IND) for CTIM-76 to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in Q1 2024.”
“Despite being an attractive target, therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) targeting CLDN6 are difficult to discover due to an abundance of closely related family members and an absolute need for high specificity. Context and Integral Molecular have been able to isolate and optimize rare antibodies against CLDN6 that do not cross-react with other CLDN family members,” said Joseph Rucker, PhD, VP of R&D at Integral Molecular.
Context Therapeutics Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to advancing medicines for female cancers. The company’s pipeline includes small molecule and bispecific antibody drug candidates that target cancer signaling pathways. Onapristone extended release (ONA-XR), a novel, first-in-class potent and selective progesterone receptor antagonist, is currently in three Phase 2 clinical trials and one Phase 1b/2 clinical trial in hormone-driven breast, ovarian, and endometrial cancers. Context is also developing CTIM-76, a selective Claudin 6 (CLDN6) x CD3 bispecific antibody for CLDN6 positive tumors, currently in preclinical development. Context is headquartered in Philadelphia. For more information, visit www.contexttherapeutics.com.
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