Senti Bio Reports Q1 2024 Results and Corporate Highlights

Senti Biosciences, Inc., a biotechnology firm, has released its operational updates and financial results for Q1 2024. The company, which is developing advanced cell and gene therapies through its proprietary Gene Circuit platform, has made notable progress in its research and clinical milestones.

Timothy Lu, MD, PhD, CEO and Co-Founder of Senti Bio, highlighted their advancements. The company is poised to start patient dosing in its Phase 1 clinical trial of SENTI-202 for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in the U.S. and Australia by Q2 2024. Additionally, they plan to begin dosing patients in a pilot trial of SENTI-301A for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in China in partnership with Celest Therapeutics.

The SENTI-202 therapy is an innovative off-the-shelf Logic Gated CAR-NK cell treatment aimed at AML patients experiencing relapse or who are refractory. Initial data on its efficacy is expected by the end of 2024, with durability data projected for 2025. Preclinical data for SENTI-202, demonstrating its selective targeting abilities, was published in April 2024, underscoring the therapy's potential.

In collaboration with Celest Therapeutics, Senti Bio is advancing SENTI-301A, a CAR-NK cell therapy designed to treat GPC3-expressing tumors, including HCC in China. They aim to initiate patient dosing in Q2 2024.

The company showcased its technological advancements at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) Annual Meeting in May 2024. Their presentations included:
- An oral presentation on discovering novel CARs for solid tumors using Senti’s REVEAL™ platform.
- Two poster presentations focusing on macrophage polarization control and IMiD-regulated therapeutic payload expression, in collaboration with BlueRock Therapeutics and GeneFab LLC.

Financially, Senti Bio reported holding $23.7 million in cash and equivalents as of March 31, 2024. The company expects an additional $18.9 million in receivables from the GeneFab transaction once certain conditions are met. Research and development expenses for Q1 2024 were $8.8 million, up from $7.1 million in Q1 2023, due to manufacturing costs for their programs. General and administrative expenses decreased from $9.2 million in Q1 2023 to $7.5 million in Q1 2024, primarily due to a reduction in headcount. The company reported a net loss of $12.1 million for the quarter.

Senti Bio continues to drive transformative changes in medicine leveraging synthetic biology, aiming to address a broad range of unmet clinical needs. The company’s pipeline focuses on off-the-shelf CAR-NK cells equipped with Gene Circuits targeting various tumors. They are also exploring the potential of these technologies in other disease areas through partnerships with companies like Spark Therapeutics and BlueRock Therapeutics.