Aduro Biotech Presents Preclinical Data for BION-1301, a First-in-Class Antibody Targeting Human APRIL, at the 2018 European Congress of Immunology

BERKELEY, Calif., Sept. 04, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aduro Biotech, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADRO) today announced that preclinical data for its first-in-class anti-APRIL antibody BION-1301 was presented at the 5^th European Congress of Immunology in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Data from the preclinical studies demonstrated that BION-1301 was well-tolerated. In addition, pharmacological activity of BION-1301 binding to APRIL (A Proliferation-Inducing Ligand), a ligand for the receptors BCMA (B cell maturation antigen) and TACI (transmembrane activator and cyclophilin ligand interactor), was established in a dose-dependent fashion. The pharmacokinetics (PK) and target engagement biomarkers were used to predict the first-in-human dose. APRIL mediates important B-cell functions including activation, survival and maturation. Serum levels of APRIL are enhanced in patients diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM) and correlate with a poor prognosis. APRIL in the bone marrow triggers a cascade of events to support human MM to proliferate, survive, induce resistance to standard-of-care drugs in MM cells and provide an immune protective environment.

“The pioneering work on the mechanism of action, PK and pharmacodynamics presented today has paved the way for the first clinical evaluation of BION-1301, an ongoing Phase 1/2 trial in patients with multiple myeloma,” commented Hans van Eenennaam, Ph.D., executive vice president antibody research and site head, Aduro Biotech Europe.

Aduro is conducting a Phase 1/2 multi-center, open-label study (see www.clinicaltrials.gov, identifier NCT03340883) designed to evaluate the safety and activity of BION-1301 in patients with relapsed or refractory MM whose disease has progressed after at least 3 prior systemic therapies, including immunomodulatory drugs, proteasome inhibitors, chemotherapies, or monoclonal antibodies.

About BION-1301
Aduro is currently evaluating BION-1301, its most advanced proprietary B-select monoclonal antibody, as a novel therapy for MM. Despite new treatments recently approved in MM, this disease remains incurable as patients relapse, or become resistant to, currently-available therapies. In preclinical studies, Aduro has established that APRIL plays a crucial part in the protective bone marrow tumor microenvironment. In these studies, APRIL, through BCMA, was shown to be critically involved in the survival, proliferation and chemoresistance of MM, and upregulates mechanisms of immunoresistance, including PD-L1 upregulation. BION-1301, a humanized antibody that blocks APRIL from binding to its receptors, has been shown in preclinical studies to halt tumor growth and overcome drug resistance. In addition, BION-1301 also demonstrated the ability to inhibit immune suppressive effects of regulatory T cells via TACI but not BCMA in MM blood and bone marrow. BION-1301 is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1/2 clinical study in patients with relapsed or refractory MM.

About Aduro
Aduro Biotech, Inc. is an immunotherapy company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies that are intended to transform the treatment of challenging diseases. Aduro's technology platforms, which are designed to harness the body's natural immune system, are being investigated in cancer indications and have the potential to expand into autoimmune and infectious diseases. Aduro's STING pathway activator platform is designed to activate the STING receptor in immune cells, which may result in a potent tumor-specific immune response. ADU-S100 (MIW815) is the first STING pathway activator compound to enter the clinic and is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1 clinical trial as a single agent and in combination with ipilimumab and in a Phase 1b combination trial with spartalizumab (PDR001), an investigational anti-PD1 immune checkpoint inhibitor. Aduro’s B-select monoclonal antibody platform, including BION-1301, an anti-APRIL antibody, is comprised of a number of immune modulating assets in research and development. Aduro's pLADD program is based on proprietary attenuated strains of Listeria that have been engineered to express tumor neoantigens that are specific to an individual patient’s tumor. Other Listeria strains for lung and prostate cancers are being advanced by a partner. Aduro is collaborating with leading global pharmaceutical companies to expand its products and technology platforms. For more information, please visit www.aduro.com.

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding our intentions or current expectations concerning, among other things, the potential for BION-1301 and our ability to advance our drug development programs. In some cases you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as “may,” “will,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “could,” “project,” “expect” or the negative or plural of these words or similar expressions.  Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those anticipated, including, but not limited to, our history of net operating losses and uncertainty regarding our ability to achieve profitability, our ability to develop and commercialize our product candidates, our ability to use and expand our technology platforms to build a pipeline of product candidates, our ability to obtain and maintain regulatory approval of our product candidates, our ability to operate in a competitive industry and compete successfully against competitors that have greater resources than we do, our reliance on third parties, and our ability to obtain and adequately protect intellectual property rights for our product candidates.  We discuss many of these risks in greater detail under the heading “Risk Factors” contained in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2018, which is on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and our actual results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and the development of the industry in which we operate, may differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Any forward-looking statements that we make in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release. We assume no obligation to update our forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this press release.