Shanghai, China, February 14th, 2022-Shanghai Henlius Biotech, Inc. (2696.HK) today announced that the first patient has been dosed in Australia in the Phase 1 clinical trial of HLX301, a recombinant humanized anti-PD-L1 and anti-TIGIT bispecific antibody (BsAb), for the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic solid tumours.
TIGIT (T cell immunoreceptor with immunoglobulin and ITIM domains) is an inhibitory receptor, mainly expressed on natural killer (NK) cells and activated CD8+ T cells, CD4+ T cells, and T regulatory cells. As an inhibitory receptor, TIGIT can inhibit innate and adaptive responses in various mechanisms of action and act as a “brake” like PD-1/PD-L1 does to stop T cells from attacking tumours. Pre-clinical studies reported that HLX301 can simultaneously block both PD-1/PD-L1 and TIGIT/PVR pathways, restore TCR signaling, inhibit tumour growth, and has good tolerance and safety, paving the way for further clinical development to against a variety of advanced cancers, including non-small cell lung cancer, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, etc. At present, no BsAb targeting PD-1/PD-L1 and TIGIT has been approved for marketing globally. As the first to be dosed in the subject, HLX301 is expected to be a first-in-class anti-PD-L1×TIGIT BsAb.
Underpinned by the patient-centric strategy, Henlius has built an innovative product pipeline with many emerging targets, including PD-1/L1, LAG-3, TIGIT, BRAF, etc. and has been developing a forward-looking presence in bispecific antibodies and the antibody-drug conjugates (ADC). Looking forward, Henlius is actively accelerating the evolution to an innovative Biopharma and improving efficiency through innovations, and will continue its momentum for innovation, further strengthening the in-licensing and collaboration on external innovative assets, and bringing more high-quality and affordable therapies to patients worldwide.
About HLX301 Phase 1 Trial
This open-label, multicentre, dose-finding, first-in-human phase 1 study aims to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and preliminary anti-tumour efficacy of HLX301 in locally advanced or metastatic solid tumour patients who have failed prior standard treatment and are intolerant or ineligible to standard therapy. Eligible patients will receive intravenous infusion of HLX301 as a single agent every- two-week. Phase 1a is a dose escalation study. The primary endpoints are to evaluate the safety, dose limiting toxicity (DLT), and determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of HLX301. Secondary endpoints include pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic and immunogenicity. Phase 1b is a dose expansion study. The primary endpoint is to determine the recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D). Secondary endpoints include objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), and duration of response (DOR).