COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR PREVENTING OR REVERSING T-CELL EXHAUSTION THROUGH ECTONUCLEOTIDASE INHIBITION AND ANTIBODY-MEDIATED TARGET CYTOSIS
申请人:Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Inc.
公开号:US20210253731A1
公开(公告)日:2021-08-19
In combination with conventional therapies (e.g., targeted therapy, chemotherapy, and angiogenesis inhibitors etc.), immunotherapies targeting checkpoint molecules have shown promise in the treatment of solid or liquid tumors. However, apoptotic regulatory T cells (Treg) induced by such therapies often become more suppressive in the tumor microenvironment (TME), through increased generation of adenosine tightly controlled by ectonucleotidases, viz. CD39 and CD73. CD39/ENTPD1, a novel checkpoint molecule, is highly expressed and activated on the tumor vasculature and infiltrating immune cells, promoting tumor growth. Deletion or blockade of CD39 enhances anti-tumor activity by augmenting anti-tumor immune responses and inhibiting tumor angiogenesis. The present invention is based at least in part on the development of anti-CD39 antibodies which mediate CD39 downregulation on immune cells, such as T-cells with markers of T-cell exhaustion, and the demonstrated utility of these antibodies in blocking tumor growth with minimal side effects in pre-clinical models.