Acepodia and Pfizer Collaborate on Chemistry-Based Cell Therapies

A biotech company, Acepodia, renowned for its scientific foundations in Nobel Prize-winning research, has entered into a collaboration with Pfizer's Ignite program. This partnership aims to support the development of Acepodia's innovative cell immunotherapies, as announced on September 3rd. Pfizer will offer resources, expertise, and strategic guidance to assist Acepodia in completing the clinical development of two cancer therapies and expanding its research into autoimmune diseases. According to an Acepodia spokesperson, no financial transactions are involved in this agreement. Acepodia will maintain all rights concerning the program’s progress and potential future collaborations.

Acepodia's antibody-cell conjugate (ACC) platform is inspired by the groundbreaking work of Nobel laureate Carolyn Bertozzi, Ph.D., who also serves as a scientific adviser to the company. Bertozzi's pioneering work in bioorthogonal chemistry, a technique that allows chemical reactions to occur within living cells without interfering with other cellular processes, earned her the 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Acepodia utilizes these modular chemical reactions to develop modified T cells with antigens that target tumors. In essence, the company employs chemistry instead of gene editing to produce CAR T cells. These ACC CAR T cells are noted for their scalability and reduced side effects compared to other CAR T-cell therapies.

With the support of Pfizer, Acepodia aims to develop T cells targeting unspecified autoimmune diseases. Acepodia's CEO, Sonny Hsiao, Ph.D., expressed optimism about the collaboration, stating that it positions the company to deliver their immunotherapies to patients in dire need of new treatment options.

The leading product in Acepodia’s pipeline is ACE1831, a cell therapy for non-Hodgkin lymphoma currently in phase 1 trials. ACE1831 T cells specifically target CD20, a protein frequently found on the surface of cancerous B cells. In May, Acepodia reported promising results from the lowest dosage levels of ACE1831, with disease stabilization observed in three out of five patients, and complete remission in one patient. Notably, the treatment did not result in any severe adverse events.

In addition to ACE1831, Pfizer will assist Acepodia in advancing another oncology treatment, ACE2016. This therapy targets solid tumor cells that express the epidermal growth factor receptor and is expected to commence phase 1 trials by the end of the year. Last year, Acepodia raised $100 million in a series D funding round to bolster its oncology research and development.

Pfizer's Ignite program is designed to partner with biotech companies to support the progression of new drugs from preclinical stages to market readiness. The program primarily focuses on oncology, inflammation, and immunology. In recent collaborations, Pfizer Ignite worked with Mediar Therapeutics to advance two drug candidates for fibrosis and with Swiss anti-allergy biotech Mabylon to develop an antibody treatment for peanut allergies.

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