Adoptive cell therapies based on tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes derived from patients’ tumor tissues have proven successful in melanoma and are also being developed as a promising new treatment for other solid tumors. The production of therapeutic quantities of TILs is dependent on reliable methods to massively expand these cells extracted from available tumor material collected via surgery, while maintaining their functional characteristics needed to fight cancer cells upon reinjection. In collaboration with academic collaborators at the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), Mendus has explored the use of its proprietary DCOne platform to expand functional TILs from ovarian cancer tissue samples. The data presented during the ITOC conference on April 3 demonstrate that TIL production can be significantly improved with dendritic cells derived from Mendus’ DCOne cell line. Addition of DCOne mDCs resulted in at least five times higher TIL expansion, with the majority being effector-memory T cells. The DCOne platform can therefore be used to improve the quantity and quality of TILs for treatment of patients with ovarian cancer and other solid tumors.

Mendus’ DCOne platform provides for GMP-grade, off-the-shelf leukemic-derived dendritic cells. Based on the company’s know-how of dendritic cell biology, Mendus has been working on the ex vivo expansion of immune cells as a basis for novel adoptive cell therapies, including memory NK cells associated with improved survival in blood-borne tumors. The data presented at ITOC indicate that the platform is versatile and can also be used for the production of TILs, an upcoming therapy for solid tumors.

Mendus has secured a number of grants to support its research programs and collaborations, including the Oncode Accelerator program and a public-private partnership grant with UMCG from Health~Holland. Mendus has an ongoing clinical collaboration with UMCG for the ALISON study, a Phase I trial evaluating safety and efficacy of Mendus’ lead product vididencel in high-grade serous ovarian cancer patients.