Biotherapeutics company Genexine and biotech firm NeoImmuneTech (NIT) have dosed the first patient in the combination trial of Hyleukin-7 with Merck’s Keytruda in patients with refractory or relapsed triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).

Hyleukin-7TM, a homodimeric Interleukin-7 (IL-7) based growth factor for T cells, is engineered to serve as a stable factor for T cell production, maturation, expansion, trafficking, functioning, and survival, in various levels of T cell production.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Related Company Profiles

View all

Hyleukin-7, which is built on the hyFc platform technology, is designed to induce persistent and long-lasting anti-tumour T cell response, as it controls white blood cell production and peripheral homeostasis.

Keytruda is a type of immunotherapy that works by blocking the PD-1 pathway and to help prevent cancer cells from hiding.

“We believe Hyleukin-7 could deliver improvements for patients non-responsive to immunotherapy regimens by treating lymphopenia.”

In June 2018, the combination regimen trial was chosen as a grantee of joint R&D program supported by Korea Drug Development Fund.

The Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety had recently granted the authorisation to start the phase 1b/2 study, which is currently under recruitment in about ten clinical sites in Korea including Samsung Medical Center.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

Genexine senior vice-president, head of clinical division Jung Won Woo said: “This combination regimen trial of Hyleukin-7 and Keytruda is very meaningful, in that it attempts to treat advanced or metastatic TNBC patients who respond poorly to standard-of-care treatments.

“We believe Hyleukin-7 could deliver improvements for patients non-responsive to immunotherapy regimens by treating lymphopenia, which is commonly observed in TNBC patients, as well as amplifying tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) that may enhance anti-tumor response.”

Hyleukin-7 is reported to have demonstrated a well-tolerated safety profile and dose-dependent increases of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocyte counts in a Phase I trial in healthy subjects and several ongoing dose-escalation trials in cancer patients.

Genexine and NIT have been undertaking and planning various proof-of-concept clinical trials to develop Hyleukin-7, a T cell amplifier as an immune-oncology-enabling drug in combination with other cancer therapeutics like immune checkpoint inhibitors and chemo/radiotherapies.