Allogene Therapeutics to Present Preclinical Findings Supporting TurboCAR Technology at the American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT) Virtual 2020 Annual Meeting

• Company Developed TurboCAR Technology Allows Cytokine Activation Signaling to be Engineered Selectively into CAR T Cells
  
• Preclinical Studies Provide Evidence That Cytokine Signaling Can Increase TurboCAR T Cell Activity While Avoiding Safety Risks of Exogenous Cytokine Administration

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., April 28, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Allogene Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALLO), a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering the development of allogeneic chimeric antigen receptor T cell (AlloCAR T) therapies for cancer, today announced that preclinical data on its TurboCAR technology will be presented in a poster session at the virtual American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT) 23^rd Annual Meeting on May 12, 2020. 

Allogene’s internally developed TurboCAR technology allows cytokine activation signaling to be engineered selectively into CAR T cells. When applied to AlloCAR T therapies, TurboCAR has the potential to improve efficacy, overcome the potential for exhaustion, and reduce cell dose requirements. TurboCARs can be tailored with signaling domains from different cytokine receptors to enhance T cell activation and persistence. Results from the preclinical study demonstrated that this approach minimizes potential safety risks associated with exogenous cytokine administration since cytokine signaling activity is directed selectively to the engineered CAR T cells.

“Allogene is continually looking to develop innovative and impactful technologies capable of advancing the field of allogeneic cell therapy. We are very excited about the potential for TurboCAR technology to enhance the potency of engineered CAR T cells directed at hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. We look forward to continuing to advance this technology, starting with our first TurboCAR candidate, ALLO-605, a BCMA-directed AlloCAR T therapy for multiple myeloma. We anticipate filing an IND for ALLO-605 in 2021,” said Barbra Sasu, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of Allogene.

In this research, TurboCARs mimicking signaling from multiple cytokines were generated, and using an EGFRvIII tool CAR, were screened and selected based on CAR T cell manufacturability and in vitro serial killing activity. A range of functional assays demonstrated improvements in activity for TurboCAR T cells as compared to parental CAR T cells.

The ASGCT abstracts are now available at https://annualmeeting.asgct.org/am20/. Details are noted below.