BURNABY, British Columbia, Dec. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Qu Biologics Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing Site Specific Immunomodulators (SSIs), a novel platform of immunotherapies designed to restore innate immune function, is pleased to report exciting survival data using a combination of Qu Biologics' QBECO SSI and CAR T-cell therapy in laboratory models of aggressive cancer. The study was conducted in collaboration with the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine).
In this experimental study, scientists demonstrated that combining QBECO SSI with CAR T-cell therapy significantly improved survival rates compared to CAR T-cell therapy alone, achieving an impressive 80% survival rate after 31 days of treatment. In contrast, the survival rate for CAR T-cell therapy alone was notably low, falling to 0% after just 18 days of treatment.
These study results are important because CAR T-cell therapy, while very effective in certain kinds of blood cancer, has not been effective in solid tumors, which represent more than 95% of all cancers. CAR T-cell efficacy in solid tumors has been impeded by poor infiltration of CAR T-cells into the tumor and immune suppression in the tumor. The marked survival advantage in this study conducted by scientists at NUS Medicine using QBECO SSI in combination with CAR T-cells suggests that QBECO SSI may solve these challenges to meaningfully improve outcomes for solid cancers.
"The survival data in this study was not subtle. There was an impressive survival advantage in the combination QBECO CAR T-cell group. Qu's QBECO SSI is designed to increase immune cell infiltration into solid tumors and restore immune function in the tumor, addressing the exact challenges that have prevented CAR T-cell efficacy in solid tumors to date”, said Dr. Hal Gunn, CEO of Qu Biologics.
Prof. Nicholas Gascoigne, an internationally recognized T-cell researcher, whose lab at Immunology Translational Research Programme at NUS Medicine performed this research, stated, "This is exciting data. The CAR T-cell field has been looking for a solution to the barriers that have prevented CAR T-cell efficacy in solid tumors. While early, the data is very promising. If CAR T-cell therapy could be effectively applied to solid tumors, it would transform the field of oncology.”
Immunologist Dr. Shirin Kalyan, Qu's VP of Scientific Innovation, notes, "The missing ingredient in most immunotherapies in use today is their lack of appropriate engagement and mobilization of the innate immune system, which plays an essential role in enabling T-cell responses against cancer. Qu's SSI platform fulfills this critical need while at the same time facilitating CAR T-cell infiltration into solid tumors. This collaborative research with NUS Medicine shows that SSIs may be the breakthrough for successful application of CAR T-cell therapy for solid cancers that the field has been searching for.”
For more information about Qu Biologics and the science behind SSIs, please visit www.qubiologics.com.
Media Contact:
Hal Gunn, MD
CEO, Qu Biologics Inc.
Phone: 604.734.1450
Email: [email protected]
About Qu Biologics
Qu Biologics is a clinical stage biotechnology company developing Site Specific Immunomodulators (SSI), a novel class of immunotherapies designed to restore innate immune function in targeted organs to reverse the immune dysregulation underlying many important diseases including cancer, chronic inflammatory diseases, and infection. Qu Biologics has completed four Phase 2 studies in lung cancer, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis. Two additional Phase 2 randomized placebo-controlled studies, in late-stage colon cancer and immunosenescence, are enrolling.
Backed by a prestigious group of scientific advisors and board members, Qu Biologics is led by a management team that includes co-founder and CEO Dr. Hal Gunn, a physician and expert on the body's immune response to chronic disease; Chief Medical Officer - Oncology Dr. Simon Sutcliffe, former CEO of the BC Cancer Agency and a distinguished clinician, scientist and leader in cancer control in Canada and internationally; and Chief Medical Officer - Infectious Disease Dr. Ted Steiner, a clinician-scientist specializing in immune responses to infections and Head of the UBC Division of Infectious Diseases. For more information, please visit www.qubiologics.com.
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Qu Biologics Inc. cautions you that statements included in this press release that are not a description of historical facts may be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are only predictions based upon current expectations and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of release of the relevant information, unless explicitly stated otherwise. Actual results, performance or achievement could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, Qu Biologics' forward-looking statements due to the risks and uncertainties inherent in Qu Biologics' business including, without limitation, statements about: the progress and timing of its clinical trials; difficulties or delays in development, testing, obtaining regulatory approval, producing and marketing its products; unexpected adverse side effects or inadequate therapeutic efficacy of its products that could delay or prevent product development or commercialization; the scope and validity of patent protection for its products; competition from other pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies; and its ability to obtain additional financing to support its operations. Qu Biologics does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required by law.
CONTACT: For more information regarding this press release, contact:
Hal Gunn, MD
CEO
Qu Biologics Inc.
Phone: 604.734.1450
Email: [email protected]
