Epitopea, a transatlantic cancer immunotherapy company, and the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC) of the Université de Montréal have published groundbreaking research in Nature Cancer demonstrating the potential of a novel approach to cancer immunotherapy. The study reveals that Epitopea's CryptoMap platform can identify shared, nonmutated, aberrantly-expressed tumor-specific antigens called Cryptigens as highly abundant, actionable targets for immunotherapy in melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Revolutionary Findings Challenge Conventional Wisdom
The research, conducted with international academic collaborators at McGill University, University of Liege in Belgium, and University of Lausanne in Switzerland, identified 589 non-redundant tumor antigens in cutaneous melanoma and NSCLC. The most striking finding was that only 1% of the actionable tumor antigens were derived from mutated sequences or mutated tumor antigens (mTAs), which have been the primary focus of most immunotherapy companies.
Of the remaining 99% of tumor antigens, approximately 37% (220 antigens) were identified as Cryptigens. These Cryptigens demonstrated key characteristics that make them promising therapeutic targets: they are immunogenic, shared among tumor samples, and could contribute to immune checkpoint blockade responses, supporting their utility in immune targeting across the tumor landscape.
Clinical Implications and Competitive Advantages
"These data from this latest publication from our collaborators at UdeM further validate the potential benefit of Epitopea's CryptoMap platform and our transformative approach to treating cancer," commented Alan C. Rigby, Epitopea's CEO. "We believe our Cryptigens offer significant competitive advantages over current treatment approaches that have focused solely on mTAs. As illustrated, our approach has the potential to stimulate the immune system to precisely recognize and destroy cancer cells more rapidly and effectively, which we believe will translate into durable patient responses in these indications."
The identification of Cryptigens with potential clinical utility distinguishes Epitopea's approach from many other immunotherapy companies that have concentrated on identifying mutated tumor antigens. This novel strategy opens new avenues for developing accessible off-the-shelf RNA-based immunotherapies for hard-to-treat cancers.
Scientific Validation and Future Directions
Dr. Claude Perreault, Principal Investigator at UdeM's Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, corresponding author of the paper, and co-founder of Epitopea, emphasized the significance of these findings. "We have long been researching immune-based approaches that could transform the lives of cancer patients through the discovery of accessible and effective immunotherapies for difficult-to-treat tumors. This latest research further strengthens our understanding of the target space amenable for the development of cancer immunotherapy treatments."
The research particularly highlights the potential value of exploring unmutated sequences across the cancer landscape. "The fact that only 1% of tumor antigens are derived from mutated sequences highlights the potential value of exploring unmutated sequences across the cancer landscape. Collectively, the findings in our collaborative manuscript challenge a dogmatic belief that mTAs are the dominant actionable targets for cancer immunotherapy," Dr. Perreault added.
Platform Technology and Company Background
Epitopea has created an extensive library of novel Cryptigen tumor-specific antigens through its proprietary CryptoMap platform, which leverages immunopeptidomics, genomics, and a bioinformatics pipeline. This technology allows the identification of aberrantly-expressed, tumor-specific antigens that are hidden within cancer's 'junk' DNA.
The company, founded in 2021 with sister operations in Cambridge, UK and Montreal, Canada, is backed by leading life science investors including Advent Life Sciences, CTI Life Sciences, Cambridge Innovation Capital, and others. Epitopea also maintains a license and research collaboration with MSD (Merck & Co., Inc.).
