HOLON, Israel, May 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Compugen
Ltd. (Nasdaq: CGEN) (TASE: CGEN) a clinical-stage cancer
immunotherapy company and a pioneer in computational target
discovery, today announced the online publication of a peer
reviewed paper titled "PVRIG is expressed on stem-like T cells in
dendritic cell-rich niches in tumors and its blockade may induce
immune infiltration in non-inflamed tumors" link, in Cancer
Immunology Research, a journal of the American Association for
Cancer Research.
"Increasingly, we are observing that an additional component is
needed to optimize the anti-tumor response to a combination of an
anti-TIGIT and anti-PD-(L)1," said Anat
Cohen-Dayag, Ph.D., President, and Chief Executive Officer
of Compugen. "Through our computational discovery work at Compugen
we were the first to discover the novel immune checkpoint PVRIG and
later presented preclinical data on the potential synergy in
blocking PVRIG, TIGIT and PD-1 pathways. Subsequently, we showed in
Phase 1 studies, that the triple blockade of PVRIG with our
potential first-in-class antibody, COM701 in combination with an
anti-TIGIT and anti-PD-1 demonstrated durable clinical responses
with a favorable safety profile in indications typically not
responding to immunotherapy. These responses were associated with
the infiltration and proliferation of cancer-fighting T cells in
the tumor microenvironment, atypical for less inflamed
indications."
Eran Ophir, Ph.D., Chief
Scientific Officer at Compugen added, "Our paper published online
today in Cancer Immunology Research provides an advanced
understanding of the unique biology of PVRIG and its role in
cancer. Using single-cell RNA sequencing and spatial transcriptomic
analysis, we showed the differentiated expression of PVRIG and its
ligand PVRL2 on early differentiated stem like memory T cells and
dendritic cells, respectively, the interaction of which plays an
important role in inhibiting the recruitment and proliferation of
cancer fighting T-cells in the tumor microenvironment. This unique
biology of PVRIG may support a novel approach of potentially
overcoming resistance to immunotherapy by sensitizing tumors to
respond to other immune checkpoint inhibitors."
About Compugen
Compugen is a clinical-stage therapeutic discovery and
development company utilizing its broadly applicable predictive
computational discovery capabilities to identify new drug targets
and biological pathways for developing cancer
immunotherapies. Compugen has developed two proprietary
product candidates: COM701, a potential first-in-class anti-PVRIG
antibody and COM902, a potential best-in-class antibody
targeting TIGIT for the treatment of solid tumours. Compugen also
has a clinical stage partnered program, rilvegostomig (previously
AZD2936), a PD-1/TIGIT bispecific antibody where the TIGIT
component is derived from Compugen's clinical stage anti-TIGIT
antibody, COM902, in Phase 3 development by AstraZeneca through a
license agreement for the development of bispecific and
multispecific antibodies. In addition, the Company's
therapeutic pipeline of early-stage immuno-oncology programs
consists of programs aiming to address various mechanisms of immune
resistance, of which the most advanced program, COM503, is in IND
enabling studies is licensed to Gilead. COM503 is a potential
first-in-class, high affinity antibody which blocks the interaction
between IL-18 binding protein and IL-18, thereby freeing natural
IL-18 in the tumor microenvironment to inhibit cancer growth.
Compugen is headquartered in Israel, with offices in San Francisco, CA. Compugen's shares are
listed on Nasdaq and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange under the
ticker symbol CGEN.
Forward-Looking Statement
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the safe-harbor provisions of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such
forward-looking statements are based on the current beliefs,
expectations, and assumptions of Compugen. Forward-looking
statements can be identified using terminology such as "will,"
"may," "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "potential," "plan,"
"goal," "estimate," "likely," "should," "confident," and "intends,"
and similar expressions that are intended to identify
forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking
statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to
our observation that an additional component is needed to optimize
the anti-tumor response to a combination of an anti-TIGIT and
anti-PD-(L)1 and statements to the effect that the unique biology
of PVRIG may support a novel approach of potentially overcoming
resistance to immunotherapy by sensitizing tumors to respond to
other immune checkpoint inhibitors. These forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that
may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of
Compugen to be materially different from any future results,
performance or achievements expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. Among these risks: clinical development
involves a lengthy and expensive process, with an uncertain outcome
and Compugen may encounter substantial delays or even an inability
to begin clinical trials for any specific product or may not be
able to conduct or complete its trials on the timelines it expects;
Compugen's business model is substantially dependent on entering
into collaboration agreements with third parties and Compugen may
not be successful in generating adequate revenues or
commercializing aspects of its business model; Compugen's approach
to the discovery of therapeutic products is based on its
proprietary computational target discovery infrastructure, which is
unproven clinically; Compugen does not know whether it will be able
to discover and develop additional potential product candidates or
products of commercial value; and conditions in Israel and in the Middle East, including the effect of the
evolving nature of the ongoing "Swords of Iron" war, may adversely
affect our operations. These risks and other risks are more fully
discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of Compugen's most recent
Annual Report on Form 20-F as filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC) as well as other documents that may be
subsequently filed by Compugen from time to time with the SEC. In
addition, any forward-looking statements represent Compugen's views
only as of the date of this release and should not be relied upon
as representing its views as of any subsequent date. Compugen does
not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements
unless required by law.
Company contact:
Yvonne
Naughton, Ph.D.
Head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
Email: ir@cgen.com
Tel: +1 (628) 241-0071
View original
content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/compugen-publishes-paper-in-cancer-immunology-research-on-unique-biology-of-pvrig-and-its-therapeutic-potential-302147507.html
SOURCE Compugen Ltd.