Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Appointment of Sohanya Cheng Resignation of Michael Torok PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Carisma Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: CARM) ("Carisma" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing innovative immunotherapies, today announced the appointment of Sohanya Cheng, MBA to the Company's Board of Directors, effective October 31, 2024. Additionally, Michael Torok has informed the Board of his intention to step down as a member, effective October 31, 2024, due to other professional commitments. "It's a pleasure to welcome Sohanya to our Board," said Sanford Zweifach, Chair of the Carisma Board. "Her broad experience in oncology, alongside her skills in leadership, strategic planning, and commercialization, will be instrumental as we continue to advance our portfolio and strengthen our foundation. We are also thankful to Michael for his valuable service and wish him all the best in his next chapter." "I am excited to join Carisma's Board and collaborate with the management team as the Company advances its mission to deliver innovative immunotherapies to patients facing serious diseases," said Ms. Cheng. "I look forward to sharing my insights and supporting the Company's strategic goals as it solidifies its position as a leader in engineered macrophages within oncology and beyond." About Sohanya Cheng, MBA Ms. Cheng brings over 20 years of experience in biopharmaceutical commercialization and research, with a strong focus on oncology. She currently serves as the EVP, Chief Commercial Officer, and Head of Business Development at Karyopharm Therapeutics. Prior to this, she was Vice President, Head of Marketing and Corporate Affairs at Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals. Ms. Cheng also spent over a decade at Amgen in various leadership roles, including Executive Director, Head of Marketing & Sales for multiple myeloma and Head of Oncology National Sales, contributing to the commercialization of key oncology brands. She holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and both a BSc and MA from the University of Cambridge, UK. About Carisma Carisma Therapeutics Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on utilizing our proprietary macrophage and monocyte cell engineering platform to develop transformative immunotherapies to treat cancer and other serious diseases. We have created a comprehensive, differentiated proprietary cell therapy platform focused on engineered macrophages and monocytes, cells that play a crucial role in both the innate and adaptive immune response. Carisma is headquartered in Philadelphia, PA. For more information, please visit . Investors: Shveta Dighe Head of Investor Relations [email protected] Media Contact: Julia Stern (763) 350-5223 [email protected] SOURCE Carisma Therapeutics Inc. WANT YOUR COMPANY'S NEWS FEATURED ON PRNEWSWIRE.COM? 440k+ Newsrooms & Influencers 9k+ Digital Media Outlets 270k+ Journalists Opted In GET STARTED

Adapted from iStock, Drypsiak Vertex may have pivoted away from the space, but candidates in development by Arrowhead/Takeda, Wave, Korro and others could address the damage underlying alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency and make today’s treatments a thing of the past. Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency is a genetic disorder that affects the liver and/or lungs. Approximately 1 in 3,500 people have two abnormal SERPINA1 genes for the alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) protein and are at risk of serious organ damage due to AATD. While M-AAT is produced in healthy humans to inhibit neutrophil elastase in the lungs, AATD patients produce Z-AAT, which does not inhibit neutrophil elastase as effectively. If too much neutrophil elastase builds up in the lungs or liver, the result is inflammation which, untreated, can lead to lifelong complications. The only currently approved treatment option for AATD is augmentation therapy , which entails delivering normal alpha-1 antitrypsin collected and purified from blood donors through weekly intravenous administration. But this treatment does not reverse pulmonary damage or stop the progression of liver damage. Multiple companies are developing candidates that would prevent or reverse this damage, and despite some setbacks in the field, in the next 5 to 10 years we could see augmentation therapy become a thing of the past. In August 2024 , Vertex Pharmaceuticals announced that the company would cease research into both of its investigational small molecules for AATD. While Vertex had hoped that VX-634 and VX-668 would treat the disease by correcting the AAT protein, the efficacy was not transformative enough. Along with Vertex’s November 2023 discontinuation of the development of VX-864 for AATD due to reports of rashes and elevated liver enzymes, these setbacks highlight some of the challenges associated with researching new treatments for AATD. Meanwhile, Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals and Takeda are recruiting for three Phase III trials for fazirsiran, an investigational subcutaneous first-in-class investigational RNA interference (RNAi) therapy for AATD-associated liver disease. While Phase II AROAAT-2002 results indicated that fazirsiran led to significant reductions in Z-AAT, the evidence for pulmonary efficacy and improvement is murky because the Phase II trial did not have a placebo arm and the median FEV1 and mean DLCOhbg—markers of pulmonary function—were stable over time in all subjects receiving experimental treatment compared to baseline. While these data do not show any signs of pulmonary decline, there is no sign of overall pulmonary improvement either. In addition, Sanofi is working on SAR447537, an AATD asset acquired from Inhibrx. Formerly known as INBRX-101 , SAR447537 is a fusion protein currently in the recruitment stage for Phase II trials involving AATD emphysema. In Phase I results, safety and pharmacokinetic data supported the intravenous use of SAR447537 every three or four weeks. However, efficacy data related to the liver are not available. In the in vivo base editing space, Beam Therapeutics is investigating the use of BEAM-302 to treat AATD. BEAM-302 is a liver-targeting lipid nanoparticle formulation that is currently undergoing Phase I/II trials and is formulated to be a one-time intravenous injection of an adenine base editor. When tested in rat and mouse models , toxic liver protein levels decreased. Finally, Wave Life Sciences, AIRNA and Korro Bio are competing in the early phases of preclinical/clinical research to develop AATD-targeting subcutaneous RNA-editing oligonucleotides. On Oct. 16, Wave reported positive proof-of-mechanism data from a Phase Ib/IIa trial of WVE-006 in AATD, while Korro Bio released preclinical data this month for its AATD investigational treatment, KRRO-110 . AIRNA had yet to release its adenosine deaminase acting on RNA (ADAR) preclinical data publicly as of July 2024. With all these investigational treatments aiming to transform the way AATD is treated, augmentation therapy could soon be obsolete. If efficacy data for RNA-based oligonucleotides is significant and points to clinical success, RNA-based oligonucleotides could hit the market as soon as four to five years from now. In the meantime, at the current trajectory, fazirsiran could reach the market as early as two to four years from now if all goes well. Given these developments in the AATD space, competition could heat up within the next decade as more efficacy data are released from therapies currently at earlier stages of development.

– In preclinical studies ARO-INHBE reduced body weight and fat mass with a novel mechanism of action that may preserve lean muscle mass compared to currently approved obesity therapies PASADENA, CA, USA I September 23, 2024 I Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARWR) today announced that it has filed for regulatory clearance to initiate a Phase 1/2a clinical trial of ARO-INHBE, the company’s investigational RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutic being developed as a potential treatment for obesity. Arrowhead also plans to file for regulatory clearance before the end of 2024 to initiate a clinical trial for its second obesity candidate, ARO-ALK7. “Arrowhead’s two investigational RNAi therapies for the treatment of obesity, ARO-INHBE and ARO-ALK7, are both designed to intervene in the same pathway that signals the body to store fat in adipose tissue. We have generated very promising preclinical data that suggests inhibition of these targets reduces body mass and fat mass but spares lean muscle mass resulting in improved body composition,” said James Hamilton, M.D., Chief of Discovery and Translational Medicine at Arrowhead. “We have designed the initial Phase 1/2 study to evaluate single and multiple doses of ARO-INHBE monotherapy in Part 1 which will enroll patients with obesity, and to evaluate multiple doses of ARO-INHBE in combination with tirzepatide in Part 2 which will enroll diabetic and non-diabetic patients with obesity. We believe new therapeutic strategies with novel mechanisms of action, like ARO-INHBE and ARO-ALK7, have the potential to make a significant impact on the way obesity is treated and we are eager to initiate clinical studies of these important new programs.” ARO-INHBE is designed to reduce the hepatic expression of the INHBE gene and its secreted gene product, Activin E. INHBE is a promising genetically validated target in which loss-of-function INHBE variants in humans are associated with lower risk of obesity and metabolic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes. Activin E acts as a ligand in a pathway that regulates energy homeostasis in adipose tissue​. Intervening in this pathway with investigational ARO-INHBE treatment has the potential to increase lipolysis, and reduce adipose hypertrophy and dysfunction, visceral adiposity, and insulin resistance. An application for approval to initiate the clinical trial was submitted to the New Zealand Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Authority for review by the Standing Committee on Therapeutic Trials. Pending clearance, Arrowhead intends to proceed with AROINHBE-1001, A Phase 1/2a dose-escalating study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of ARO-INHBE in up to 78 adult volunteers with obesity. Part 1 of the study is designed to assess single and multiple doses of ARO-INHBE monotherapy, and Part 2 of the study is designed to assess ARO-INHBE in combination with tirzepatide, a subcutaneously administered GLP-1/GIP receptor co-agonist that has been approved in the United States and the European Union for management type 2 diabetes mellitus since 2022 and weight management since 2023/2024 respectively. About Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals develops medicines that treat intractable diseases by silencing the genes that cause them. Using a broad portfolio of RNA chemistries and efficient modes of delivery, Arrowhead therapies trigger the RNA interference mechanism to induce rapid, deep, and durable knockdown of target genes. RNA interference, or RNAi, is a mechanism present in living cells that inhibits the expression of a specific gene, thereby affecting the production of a specific protein. Arrowhead’s RNAi-based therapeutics leverage this natural pathway of gene silencing. For more information, please visit www.arrowheadpharma.com , or follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @ArrowheadPharma or on LinkedIn . To be added to the Company’s email list and receive news directly, please visit http://ir.arrowheadpharma.com/email-alerts . SOURCE: Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals