Discovery and Optimization of a Synthetic Class of Nectin-4-Targeted CD137 Agonists for Immuno-oncology.

ABSTRACT: CD137 (4-1BB) is a co-stimulatory receptor on immune cells and Nectin-4 is a cell adhesion molecule that is overexpressed in multiple tumor types. Using a series of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based linkers, synthetic bicyclic peptides targeting CD137 were conjugated to Bicycles targeting Nectin-4. The resulting bispecific molecules were potent CD137 agonists that require the presence of both Nectin-4-expressing tumor cells and CD137-expressing immune cells for activity. A multipronged approach was taken to optimize these Bicycle tumor-targeted immune cell agonists by exploring the impact of chemical configuration, binding affinity, and pharmacokinetics on CD137 agonism and antitumor activity. This effort resulted in the discovery of BT7480, which elicited robust CD137 agonis

SUBMITTER: Upadhyaya P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9340768 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature