Avid Bioservices Inc (CDMO)

[cheynew]

Alan Epstein also speaks. A blast from the past! Remember how PPHM was to get stock of a Chinese company as part of a legal settlement? PPHM ended up with nothing of value, at least nothing that shows up in the asset section of the balance sheet.



Alan Epstein
Professor of Pathology
Keck School of Medicine of USC

Immune profiling has been widely used to probe mechanisms of immune escape in cancer and identify novel targets for therapy. Two emerging uses of immune signatures are identification of likely responders to immunotherapy regimens among individuals wi th cancer or to understand the variable responses seen among subjects with cancer in immunotherapy trials. Here the immune profiles of six murine solid tumor models (CT26, 4T1, MAD109, RENCA, LLC, and B16) were correlated to tumor regression and survival in response to two immunotherapy regimens. Comprehensive profiles for each model were generated using quantitative RT -PCR, immunohistochemistry, and flow cytometry techniques, as well as functional studies of suppressor cell populations (Treg and MDSC), to analyze the tumor microenvironment. Based upon these studies, tumors were stratified as highly or poorly immunogenic. In comparison, highly immunogenic tumors show significantly greater presence of T -cell co-stimulatory molecules and immunosuppression in the tumor microenvironment. An absence of tumor-infiltrating CTL and mature DC was seen across all models. Significant tumor responses were seen in those tumor models shown to be highly immunogenic using a DC vaccine with LEC/chTNT-3 fusion protein combination immunotherapy. Of interest, tumor MHC class I expression correlated with overall tumor immunogenicity level and was the best marker to predict immunotherapy response with these regimens. By using experimental tumor models as surrogates for human cancers, these studies demonstrate how select features of an immune profile may be utilized to identify patients most likely to respond to immunotherapy regimens.

http://www.giiconference.com/gtc376363/immunotherapeutics-immunomonitoring-agenda.shtml