GlyTR Therapeutics Unveils Groundbreaking Glycan-Targeting Cancer Immunotherapy

GlyTR Therapeutics, a biotech company pioneering development of glycan-targeting cancer immunotherapies, announced the publication of its foundational technology in the journal, Cell.

With the publication in Cell, GlyTR is entering the global spotlight. This is a critical milestone as we advance toward clinical trials and expand partnerships with investors, academic collaborators, and pharmaceutical companies."

Bob Genthert, Co-Founder and Interim CEO

The study details Glycan-Dependent T cell Recruiter (GlyTR1 & GlyTR2) therapeutics that have pan-cancer activity by targeting tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs). The TACA's targeted by GlyTR are among the most abundant and widespread cancer antigens known but are largely inert to the immune system and previously un-targetable.

Conventional antigen-targeting immunotherapies like Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cell (CAR-T cell) and bispecific antibodies require cancer-specific antigen expression to avoid "on-target, off-cancer" toxicity to normal tissue. In contrast, GlyTR's innovative "Velcro-like" density-dependent binding enables discrimination between tumor and normal tissue based on target density, potentially offering unprecedented safety and efficacy in oncology treatment.

GlyTR1 also overcomes a second major roadblock to development of CAR T cells and bi-specific antibodies: immune-suppression driven by the tumor. By binding to an immune-suppressive TACA, GlyTR1 defeats these mechanisms to break the shield of immunosuppression.

"This publication validates more than a decade of research and represents a major step toward making multiple TACAs druggable targets for the first time," said Dr. Michael Demetriou, M.D., Ph.D., Co-Founder and Professor of Neurology and Molecular Genetics at University of California, Irvine. "We believe GlyTR technology could fundamentally reshape the landscape of immuno-oncology by providing a safe pan-cancer therapeutic option in a single drug."

"This work represents a potential paradigm shift from the current antibody-centric approach to cancer cell targeting," said Dr. Raymond Zhou, Ph.D., co-founder and president of GlyTR Therapeutics.

Highlights from the Cell publication:

• Demonstrates potent, selective killing of multiple highly diverse tumors in preclinical models, including breast, ovarian, colon, pancreatic, lung, prostate and leukemia.
• Shows no toxicity in mice with human-like glycan expression.
• Details the unique ability to overcome immunosuppression in hostile tumor microenvironments.

GlyTR technology has been developed in collaboration with the UC Irvine from grants totaling ~$30 million. This includes a Cancer Moonshot award from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), multiple small business grants from NCI, several awards form the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) and a NCI Experimental Therapeutics program award for clinical-grade manufacturing of GlyTR1 for human trials.