Compugen Announces Presentations of Results for CGEN-15001
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Compugen Ltd. has announced that experimental results supporting CGEN-15001’s induction of long-term autoimmune disease remission in disease animal models, potentially through a novel mechanism of action, are being presented at two sessions at the 3rd International Conference on Immune Tolerance, now being held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, from September 28-30, 2014.
The presentations are being given by Joseph R. Podojil, PhD, of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, and by Iris Hecht, PhD, Principal Scientist at Compugen.
In a poster presentation titled “Tolerogenic and immunomodulatory effects in the EAE model of multiple sclerosis induced by CGEN-15001, an Fc-fused protein derived from a novel immune checkpoint,” Dr. Podojil disclosed data indicating that the durable therapeutic responses to CGEN-15001 treatment, demonstrated in disease animal models, are potentially maintained via regulatory T cells (Tregs), which are known to play critical roles in the maintenance of immune tolerance.
These initial results were recently generated as part of Compugen’s collaboration with Prof. Stephen D. Miller, Professor of Microbiology-Immunology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, where Dr. Podojil is a Research Assistant Professor in Prof. Miller’s research group.
Dr. Anat Cohen-Dayag, Compugen’s President and CEO, stated, “Immune tolerance induction, which appears to be central to CGEN-15001’s mode of action, is a highly sought goal for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, including type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and psoriasis, and for preventing transplant rejection. Drugs that restore immune tolerance have the potential to provide long-term remission of such diseases and conditions without compromising the ability of the immune system to fight infectious diseases and malignancies.”
The recent experimental results being disclosed by Dr. Podojil are based on the R-EAE mouse model of multiple sclerosis, in which short-term administration of CGEN-15001 results in long-term disease remission. The inactivation of Tregs in CGEN-15001 treated R-EAE mice during the disease remission period resulted in disease relapse, strongly suggesting that Tregs are essential for maintenance of CGEN-15001’s long-term therapeutic effect. Additional experimental results in the R-EAE model presented by Dr. Podojil, using blockade of central pathways for Treg induction and function, further support involvement of Tregs in the in vivo mechanism of action of CGEN-15001.
The potential of CGEN-15001 to restore immune tolerance will also be the subject of Dr. Hecht’s oral presentation at the conference tomorrow. In her talk entitled “CGEN-15001, a novel immune-modulatory Fc fusion protein is efficacious in models of autoimmune diseases and induces immune tolerance,” Dr. Hecht will present an overview of Compugen’s prior experimental results for CGEN-15001, demonstrating long-lasting efficacy in animal models of several autoimmune diseases. In addition, she will present data supporting restoration of immune tolerance as a potential mechanism of action providing such long-lasting therapeutic potential.
