Category Archives: Immunology

Immunology

Kezar Life Sciences Strengthens Executive Team with the Appointment of Noreen R. Henig, MD as Chief Medical Officer – GlobeNewswire

SAN FRANCISCO, May 04, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kezar Life Sciences, Inc.(Nasdaq:KZR), a clinical-stage biotechnology company discovering and developing novel small molecule therapeutics to treat unmet needs in autoimmunity and cancer, today announced the appointment of Noreen R. Henig, MD as its Chief Medical Officer. As an integral member of the Companys Executive Leadership team, Dr. Henig will oversee all aspects of the Companys clinical development, regulatory and medical affairs.

Noreen brings with her a depth and breadth of expertise in clinical practice, translational science, clinical development, and medical affairs, and we are thrilled to welcome her to the Kezar team, said John Fowler, Kezars Chief Executive Officer. Her proven leadership skills, deep understanding of immunology and rare diseases, and profound appreciation of the patient voice will make a significant impact, and I look forward to working in partnership with her as we continue to advance our novel therapies for a wide range of autoimmune diseases and cancers.

Noreen Roth Henig, M.D. is a seasoned leader whose career spans clinical practice, academic medicine, translational science, clinical development, medical and regulatory affairs. She currently serves on the Board of Avidity Biosciences and most recently served as Chief Medical Officer of Breath Therapeutics, which was acquired by Zambon SpA in 2019. As CMO, Dr. Henig built and led the clinical team and was responsible for all development activities including clinical and non-clinical science, clinical operations, regulatory, project management, and medical affairs. Prior to joining Breath, Dr.Henig was Chief Medical Officer at ProQR Therapeutics where she brought two unique RNA oligonucleotides through early clinical trials in rare diseases. Before ProQR, Dr. Henig spent 2008 through 2014 at Gilead Sciences where she held roles with increasing responsibility, including building and leading a global medical affairs organization, strategic development of clinical trials Phase2-4, regulatory strategy, corporate development, leadership of key alliances and commercial strategy. Prior to joining industry, Dr. Henig spent nearly 10 years in leadership roles within academic medicine at Stanford University and California Pacific Medical Center. She is a board-certified physician in Pulmonary, Critical Care and board eligible in Allergy and Immunology. Dr.Henig received her B.A. from Yale University and her M.D. from Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in 1991 with a distinction in immunology. She trained in Internal Medicine at University of California, San Francisco and in Pulmonary/Critical Care and Allergy/Immunology at University of Washington, Seattle.

I am excited to join Kezar at such an important time in the companys growth, said Dr. Henig. Kezars scientific excellence in protein homeostasis via protein degradation and secretion presents tremendous opportunity to create elegant therapies for those living with serious and often debilitating diseases. It will be a joy to work alongside Kezars talented and dynamic team to realize our full potential by combining science with innovative approaches to development and patient engagement.

About Kezar Life Sciences

Based in South San Francisco, Kezar Life Sciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company committed to revolutionizing treatments for patients with autoimmune diseases and cancer. Kezar is translating its innovative research on the immunoproteasome and protein secretion pathways to advance novel therapeutic approaches. KZR-616, a first-in-class selective immunoproteasome inhibitor, is being evaluated in severe and underserved autoimmune diseases. Additionally, Kezar has nominated KZR-261 as its first clinical candidate for the treatment of cancer from its protein secretion program and is undergoing IND-enabling activities for the program. For more information, visit http://www.kezarlifesciences.com.

CONTACT:Celia EconomidesSVP, Strategy & External Affairsceconomides@kezarbio.com

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Kezar Life Sciences Strengthens Executive Team with the Appointment of Noreen R. Henig, MD as Chief Medical Officer - GlobeNewswire

Immunology

Anti-rheumatism drug could help those with severe COVID-19 signs : The Asahi Shimbun – Asahi Shimbun

An immunosuppressive drug for rheumatism shows encouraging signs of inhibiting severe pneumonia symptoms caused by COVID-19, researchers say.

Some patients severely affected by the new coronavirus underwent an improvement in their condition at a hospital in Osaka Prefecture after they were administered Actemra, also known as tocilizumab, which is used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.

Actemra is designed to inhibit the activity of a cytokine protein called interleukin-6 (IL-6) that is associated with the immune system. It was discovered by Tadamitsu Kishimoto, a specially appointed professor of immunology at Osaka University, and his team.

When IL-6 becomes overactive, it triggers a phenomenon known as a cytokine storm where fever, hypoxia and other problems emerge, occasionally resulting in fatal shock or multiple organ failure. Cytokine storms are believed to contribute to serious coronavirus cases.

China and other countries started administering Actemra for COVID-19 patients, and one report said 19 of 20 people treated with the drug regained their health.

In an article released in early April, a team of researchers primarily attached to the University of Toronto in Canada said coronavirus patients with a significantly high level of IL-6 develop severe conditions more easily and that Actemra is helpful in treating serious symptoms.

The team pointed out that the safety and effectiveness of the immunosuppressive drug need to be evaluated through large-scale clinical trials.

The article, which had yet to undergo a peer review, comprehensively analyzed eight reports, including theses that have yet to be examined by referees for assessment.

At the Osaka Habikino Medical Center in Habikino, Osaka Prefecture, a virus therapy team headed by infectious disease specialist Takayuki Nagai tested Actemra on seven patients with severe pneumonia.

An improvement of symptoms was reported in five of the test subjects as of April 13, although the health condition of the remaining two patients deteriorated.

The patients were carefully screened on the basis of inflammation test results, progress of symptoms and the degree of hypoxia because Actemra has not been approved for use in treating pneumonia.

"Our next step is to figure out when to start administering the drug so as to maximize its effect, said Toshio Tanaka, deputy director of the medical center.

Kishimoto, who discovered IL-6, said he believes controlling cytokine storms to allow a patients immune system to work properly will help those infected with the virus to recover from the disease.

Actemra does not eliminate the virus, but it may help save the lives of patients, he said.

Pharmaceutical companies are forging ahead with plans for clinical trials to confirm the effectiveness and safety of the drug in the context of coronavirus treatment.

The Swiss-based Roche Group announced in March it will begin a clinical trial of Actemra, covering 330 patients across the world.

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., which released Actemra as Japans first antibody drug, is also planning a clinical study in Japan.

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Anti-rheumatism drug could help those with severe COVID-19 signs : The Asahi Shimbun - Asahi Shimbun

Immunology

COVID-19 Progression May Be Impacted by Immune Response Timing – Technology Networks

A new USC study suggests that temporarily suppressing the bodys immune system during the early stages of COVID-19 could help a patient avoid severe symptoms.Thats because the research, published online in the Journal of Medical Virology, shows that an interaction between the bodys two main lines of defense may be causing the immune system to go into overdrive in some patients.

The bodys first line of defense, the innate immune response, starts right after an infection, like an infantry going after a foreign invader, killing the virus and any cells damaged by it. The second line of defense, the adaptive immune response, kicks in days later if any virus remains, employing what it has learned about the virus to mobilize a variety of special forces such as T cells and B cells.

Using the target cell-limited model, a common mathematical model developed to understand the dynamics of viral infections, the researchers examined how the two immune responses work in COVID-19 patients compared to patients who have the flu.

The flu is a fast-moving infection that attacks certain target cells on the surface of the upper respiratory system and kills almost all of the target cells within two to three days. The death of these cells deprives the virus of more targets to infect and allows the innate immune response time to clear the body of almost all of the virus before the adaptive system comes into play.

The danger is, as the infection keeps going on, it will mobilize the whole of the adaptive immune response with its multiple layers, said Weiming Yuan, associate professor in the Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, and co-corresponding author of the study. This longer duration of viral activity may lead to an overreaction of the immune system, called a cytokine storm, which kills healthy cells, causing tissue damage.

The interaction of the innate and the adaptive immune responses might also explain why some COVID-19 patients experience two waves of the disease, appearing to get better before eventually getting much worse.

Some COVID-19 patients may experience a resurgence of the disease after an apparent easing of symptoms, said Sean Du, adjunct researcher and lead author of the study. Its possible that the combined effect of the adaptive and the innate immune responses may reduce the virus to a low level temporarily. However, if the virus is not completely cleared, and the target cells regenerate, the virus can take hold again and reach another peak.

Based on the results of the mathematical modeling, we proposed a counterintuitive idea that a short regimen of a proper immunosuppressant drug applied early in the disease process may improve a patients outcome, said Du. With the right suppressive agent, we may be able to delay the adaptive immune response and prevent it from interfering with the innate immune response, which enables faster elimination of the virus and the infected cells.

Small studies out of China, including a recent one of COVID-19 patients and one of SARS patients in 2003 show patients who received immunosuppressants such as corticosteroids had better results than those who did not.

The researchers said a possible next step could be to take daily measurements of viral loads and other biomarkers in COVID-19 patients, to see if the data validates the mathematical modeling. More preclinical studies including experiments in animal models will also be needed to prove the efficacy of an early immune suppressing treatment.

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

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COVID-19 Progression May Be Impacted by Immune Response Timing - Technology Networks

Immunology

Asthma and COPD Medication Adherence Has Increased During the COVID-19 Pandemic – Benzinga

Study in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice, an official journal of the AAAAI, examines adherence trends before and during the outbreak of COVID-19 in the United States using data from Propeller Health's digital health platform.

MILWAUKEE (PRWEB) May 04, 2020

According to research from The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice (JACI: In Practice), controller inhaler adherence increased between January and March 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Researchers analyzed the adherence of controller inhaler use for 7,578 patients using Propeller Health, a digital platform that uses electronic medication monitors to track inhaler use and send alerts to patients about missed doses. Data showed that between the first seven days of January 2020 and the last seven days of March 2020, there was a 14.5% relative increase in mean daily controller medication adherence. During the last week of March, data showed over 53% of patients achieved 75% or greater medication adherence, up 14.9% from the first seven days of January.

"We are encouraged by the increase in patient adherence to their medications for asthma and COPD, which is critical to avoiding symptoms and keeping patients out of the hospital during this pandemic," said first author Leanne Kaye, PhD, MPH. "This research further supports that digital health tools can improve adherence and provide insight into patient well-being between office visits."

The study authors believe that the observed trend may be attributable to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic guidelines regarding medication use, as well as patients' desire to keep their pre-existing respiratory disease under control at this time.

Daily controller medications are essential for patients with respiratory conditions such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Controlling primary respiratory diseases with proper medication use can improve disease outcomes and reduce acute events requiring medical care, which could inadvertently expose a patient to COVID-19.

There were no statistically significant differences in improved medication adherence between asthma and COPD patients during the study period. The data showed similar medication adherence increases across all age groups, with older patients overall showing a higher baseline adherence.

You can learn more about asthma and COVID-19 on the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology website, aaaai.org.

The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI) represents allergists, asthma specialists, clinical immunologists, allied health professionals and others with a special interest in the research and treatment of allergic and immunologic diseases. Established in 1943, the AAAAI has more than 7,100 members in the United States, Canada and 72 other countries. The AAAAI's Find an Allergist/Immunologist service is a trusted resource to help you find a specialist close to home.

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: https://www.prweb.com/releases/asthma_and_copd_medication_adherence_has_increased_during_the_covid_19_pandemic/prweb17086711.htm

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Asthma and COPD Medication Adherence Has Increased During the COVID-19 Pandemic - Benzinga

Immunology

T Cell Counts and Cytokine Storms May Hold Key to Effective COVID-19 Treatment – Technology Networks

Cytokine storms may affect the severity of COVID-19 cases by lowering T cell counts, according to a new study published in Frontiers in Immunology. Researchers studying coronavirus cases in China found that sick patients had a significantly low number of T cells, a type of white blood cell that plays a crucial role in immune response, and that T cell counts were negatively correlated with case severity.Interestingly, they also found a high concentration of cytokines, a protein that normally helps fight off infection. Too many cytokines can trigger an excessive inflammatory response known as a cytokine storm, which causes the proteins to attack healthy cells. The study suggests that coronavirus does not attack T cells directly, but rather triggers the cytokine release, which then drives the depletion and exhaustion of T cells.

The findings offer clues on how to target treatment for COVID-19, which has become a worldwide pandemic and a widespread threat to human health in the past few months. We should pay more attention to T cell counts and their function, rather than respiratory function of patients, says author Dr. Yongwen Chen of Third Military Medical University in China, adding that more urgent, early intervention may be required in patients with low T lymphocyte counts.

Chen says he and his co-authors became interested in examining T cells when they noticed that many of the patients they treated for COVID-19 had abnormally low numbers of lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell that includes T cells. Considering T cells central role of response against viral infections, especially in the early stage when antibodies are not boosted yet, we took the T cells as our focal point, says Chen.

Authors examined 522 patients with coronavirus along with 40 healthy controls. All patients studied were admitted to two hospitals in Wuhan, China between December 2019 and January 2020, and ages ranged between 5 days and 97 years old. Of the 499 patients who had their lymphocytes recorded, 76% had significantly low total T cell counts. ICU patients had significantly lower T cell counts compared with non-ICU cases, and patients over the age of 60 had the lowest number of T cells.

Importantly, the T cells that did survive were exhausted and could not function at full capacity. Not only does this have implications for COVID-19 patient outcomes, but T cell exhaustion leaves patients more vulnerable to secondary infection and calls for scrupulous care.

Chen says that future research should focus on finding finer subpopulations of T cells in order to discover their vulnerability and effect in disease, along with identifying drugs that recover T cell numbers and boost function. Authors say that Tocilizumab is an existing drug that may be effective, but that it needs to be investigated in the context of coronavirus. Antiviral treatments, such as Remdesivir, may also prevent the progression of T cell exhaustion, but all future treatments will require further study.

In the meantime, this new research deepens our understanding of how the novel coronavirus affects the body and it indicates ways to lessen its impact.ReferenceDiao et al. (2020). Reduction and Functional Exhaustion of T Cells in Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Frontiers in Immunology. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2020.00827

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

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T Cell Counts and Cytokine Storms May Hold Key to Effective COVID-19 Treatment - Technology Networks

Immunology

Sitting on a Pile of Cash? Here is a Company in the Immunology Field with a 77% Upside Target Mid-term – Live Trading News

$CGEN

Compugen Ltd. (NASDAQ:CGEN) is seen as Buy and the price target at 23.

The stock finished at 13.82-0.70 (-4.82%) at close: 4:00p EDT and 13.90+0.08 (0.58%) Pre-Market:5:12a EDT

All of our Key indicators have turned Very Bullish across the board since 16 April. Key Support is at 11.79 and the Resistance is Nil.

Compugen Ltd. is a therapeutic discovery company engaged in the research, development, and commercialization of therapeutic and product candidates in Israel, the US, and EU.

The companys therapeutic pipeline consists of immuno-oncology programs against novel drug targets, including T cell immune checkpoints and other early-stage immuno-oncology programs focusing on myeloid target.

Its product pipeline consists of COM701, a therapeutic antibody that is in phase I clinical trials for PVRIG; BAY 1905254, a therapeutic antibody that is in phase I clinical trials for ILDR2; and COM902, a therapeutic immuno-oncology antibody for TIGIT program.

Compugen Ltd. has a collaboration agreement with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY)to evaluate the safety of COM701 in combination with Bristol-Myers Squibbs programmed death-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor Opdivo in patients with advanced solid tumors; and license agreement with MedImmune Limited for the development of bi-specific and multi-specific immuno-oncology antibody products.

The company was incorporated in Y 1993 and is HQd in Holon, Israel.

Have a healthy day, Keep the Faith!

BMY, CGEN, commercialization, development, discovery, immunology, oncology, product, research, therapeutic

Paul A. Ebeling, polymath, excels in diverse fields of knowledge. Pattern Recognition Analyst in Equities, Commodities and Foreign Exchange and author of The Red Roadmasters Technical Report on the US Major Market Indices, a highly regarded, weekly financial market letter, he is also a philosopher, issuing insights on a wide range of subjects to a following of over 250,000 cohorts. An international audience of opinion makers, business leaders, and global organizations recognizes Ebeling as an expert.

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Sitting on a Pile of Cash? Here is a Company in the Immunology Field with a 77% Upside Target Mid-term - Live Trading News

Immunology

South Africa’s Covid-19 epidemic is almost only getting started – NICD expert – CapeTalk

Vaccine and immunology expert Dr Melinda Suchard says the number of Covid-19 infections in the country is only going to get higher.

Dr Suchard is the head of the Centre for Vaccines and Immunology at the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD).

She says the Covid-19 numbers will rise as the country gradually eases the lockdown, with new transmission patterns expected to emerge.

Dr Suchard says the health system is still managing with sufficient bed capacity for infected patients so far.

RELATED: Dr Max Price explores reasons why SA has an extremely low Covid-19 death rate

The contact patterns are increasing.

We have to anticipate and expect higher numbers.

The numbers will go higher. We know that our epidemic is almost only getting started... The early lockdown prevented the numbers from taking off.

Listen to the discussion on Afternoon Drive with John Maytham:

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South Africa's Covid-19 epidemic is almost only getting started - NICD expert - CapeTalk

Immunology

Clinigen: IL-2 Plays Role in Emerging TIL Therapies – Business Wire

BURTON UPON TRENT, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Clinigen Group plc (AIM: CLIN, Clinigen or the Group), the global pharmaceutical and services company acknowledges the presentation of results from the Phase I trial Durable complete responses to adoptive cell transfer using tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) in non -small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Ben C. Creelan MD, MS from the Thoracic Oncology, Immunology Program of the Moffitt Cancer and Research Institute presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) virtual annual meeting on April 28, 2020. Eligibility criteria described in trial registry (NCT03215810).

The objectives of the study were to evaluate the safety and efficacy of TIL therapy in metastatic NSCLC (mNSCLC) after evidence of progression on nivolumab*. The authors concluded that the Cy/Flu/TIL/IL-2 therapy has manageable toxicity and sustained activity in PD-1 experienced mNSCLC. It also was speculated that TIL may be a promising therapeutic option for certain mNSCLC patients.

Adoptive cellular therapy is a novel treatment which typically includes select lymphodepleting agents, autologous tumor infiltrating lymphocytes and Proleukin. This therapy currently is being studied in a range of tumors.

Shaun Chilton, Group Chief Executive Officer, Clinigen said:

We applaud the Moffitt Cancer Center, Dr Creelan and co-investigators on this study and their work looking at this novel treatment in a cancer with such high unmet medical need. At Clinigen, we strive for solutions to improve peoples lives and are pleased with the role Proleukin is playing in the development of these emerging TIL therapies.

- Ends -

Notes to Editors

About TIL therapy

Adoptive cell therapy (ACT) using tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) is a personalized cancer treatment based on the infusion of autologous CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes expanded in-vitro from tumors in the presence of interleukin-2 (IL-2) 2 alone, or in combination with IL-7, IL-15, and/or IL-21. 3,4,5 The treatment may include high-dose lymphodepleting chemotherapy, the infusion of the expanded and activated T cells and interleukin-2 (IL-2) injections to increase survival of the T cells. 6 TIL therapy currently is being studied in a wide range of tumors.

About Proleukin

Proleukin is the first and only approved recombinant IL-2 indicated for the treatment of adults with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) or metastatic melanoma (mM) by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). For further information, specific to the US product dosing and administration please visit http://www.proleukin.com. IL-2 is being studied in clinical development programs as a component of cell immunotherapies, including TIL therapy.

About Clinigen

Clinigen Group plc (AIM: CLIN) is a global pharmaceutical and services company with a unique combination of businesses focused on providing ethical access to medicines. Its mission is to deliver the right medicine to the right patient at the right time through three areas of global medicine supply; clinical trial, unlicensed and licensed medicines. The Group has sites in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia Pacific.

Clinigen now has over 1,100 employees across five continents in 14 countries, with supply and distribution hubs and operational centres of excellence in key long-term growth regions. The Group works with 22 of the top 25 pharmaceutical companies; interacting with over 15,000 registered users across over 100 countries, shipping approximately 6.4 million units in the year.

For more information on Clinigen, please visit http://www.clinigengroup.com.

* Nivolumab is manufactured and distributed by Bristol-Myers Squibb Company under the trade name OPDIVO.

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Clinigen: IL-2 Plays Role in Emerging TIL Therapies - Business Wire

Immunology

‘No-brainer’: Dublin Immunology Prof thinks everyone should cover their faces – Irish Examiner

A leading expert says recommending that people wear face coverings is a "no brainer".

It is expected health officials will require people to use them in some shops and on public transport when restrictions are eased.

They do not want the public rushing out, however, to buy medical-style masks now, though, to make sure there is enough for healthcare workers.

Kingston Mills, Professor of Immunology at Trinity College Dublin, thinks everyone should cover their faces to try and limit the spread of Covid 19.

He says: "Face masks to me are a no brainer. There is absolutely no reason why we should not all be wearing face coverings or face masks when we go to shops.

"Or if we go back to work and we are going to be working in reasonably close proximity to others."

Yesterday the Government announced a phased approach for exiting the coronavirus lockdown in place across the country.

From Tuesday, Ireland will begin to cautiously re-emerge from total lockdown but after two further weeks of tight restrictions, the five-phase lifting of restrictions will commence.

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'No-brainer': Dublin Immunology Prof thinks everyone should cover their faces - Irish Examiner

Immunology

9 Common Foods That Are Responsible for Almost All Food Allergies – msnNOW

Food allergies develop when the bodys immune system becomes sensitized and overreacts to a particular component of the food. It's this overactive immune response that causes the symptoms of the allergy, says David Stukus, MD, allergist, associate professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Allergy and Immunology, director of the Food Allergy Treatment Center at Nationwide Childrens Hospital, and member of the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (ACAAI). This can be triggered by eating even a small amount of the food and leads to symptoms including hives, digestive issues, swollen airways, and in some cases, death, he says.

"There are a lot of myths out there about food allergies and these can be very harmful to people looking for answers about their symptoms," he says. "If you think you have a food allergy or even a food 'sensitivity,' it is so important to talk to an allergist about your symptoms and the best way to prevent and treat them."

Click through the slide show above to learn more.

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9 Common Foods That Are Responsible for Almost All Food Allergies - msnNOW