Arovella Therapeutics Ltd (ASX: ALA), a biotechnology company focused on developing its invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cell therapy platform to treat blood cancers and solid tumours, has announced promising results from an in vitro study. The study demonstrated that its novel claudin 18.2 (CLDN18.2)-targeting chimeric antigen receptor (CAR), when incorporated into T cells, effectively eliminates pancreatic cancer cells. The company confirmed the functionality of its novel CAR by demonstrating that CLDN18.2 CAR-T cells robustly eliminate pancreatic cancer cells that express CLDN18.2.
The study, conducted at the University of North Carolina, showed that Arovella’s CLDN18.2 CAR performed comparably to a leading CLDN18.2 CAR. Arovella anticipates that the anti-tumour activity of its CAR will be even more effective in vivo when integrated into Arovella’s iNKT cell platform. Pancreatic cancer is a highly aggressive cancer type with limited treatment options, making these findings a significant step forward.
Arovella is now moving forward with incorporating its CLDN18.2 CAR into iNKT cells, followed by in vivo studies in mice focusing on pancreatic and gastric cancer. Recent research indicates that CAR-iNKT cells outperform CAR-T cells in solid tumours by reshaping the tumour microenvironment and activating other cancer-killing immune cells. The company believes its CLDN18.2-CAR-iNKT cells will show superior performance due to this enhanced functionality.
Dr Michael Baker, CEO and Managing Director of Arovella, expressed enthusiasm about the results, highlighting the potential of their novel CAR to target difficult-to-treat solid tumours. He noted that the cytotoxic potential observed in the study was equivalent to a CAR with a pending regulatory approval, supporting the incorporation of the CLDN18.2-targeting CAR into Arovella’s iNKT cell platform.
