TC BioPharm products

TCB002 is an unmodified allogeneic gamma delta T cell product, being initially used for the treatment of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML). This product is currently undergoing a phase 1 clinical trial as part of a dose escalation and safety study, in partnership with ÚKHT, Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, Prague. AML is a cancer characterized by infiltration of the bone marrow, blood, and other tissues by proliferative, clonal, poorly differentiated cells of the hematopoietic system.

TCB004 is a gamma delta CAR-T product for the treatment of AML redirected against an undisclosed target antigen. The co-stim CAR structure on TCB004 prevents toxicity against healthy cells and is ideally suited for targeting AML where finding a target ubiquitously and exclusively presented on diseased cells has so far proved impossible. AML is a cancer characterized by infiltration of the bone marrow, blood, and other tissues by proliferative, clonal, poorly differentiated cells of the hematopoietic system and is predicted to affect 22,000 people per year in the US.

TCB005 is an allogeneic CAR-T product which targets B7-H3 (also known as CD276). B7-H3 expression has been detected in a wide range of solid tumors including lung, breast, colorectal, liver and skin cancers. It has also been observed on tumor vasculature and stroma, has been hypothesized to be an immune checkpoint and to be expressed on cancer stem cells, making it promising target for the treatment of metastatic disease. The broad B7-H3 expression means there is a scope to help a large number of patients across many cancer types.

Our therapies are focused on leveraging the inherent biological capabilities of gamma delta T cells (GDT cells) together with an integrated cell engineering approach. GDT cells are a component of the lymphocytes (white blood cells) present within all humans, representing approximately 1-5% of the circulating population. As part of the immune system`s innate response, their natural properties make them promising therapeutic candidates. This review demonstrates the historical work on GDT cell therapies, and the promise offered by combinations or modifying them with transgenes.

TC BioPharm’s cell banks have been developed as a resource for clinical development of cost-effective, safe and efficacious therapeutic treatments and ultimately, the ability to treat more patients. These T cell banks provide TC BioPharm with core technology to develop a deep portfolio of next-generation CAR-T products directed against a wide variety of different infectious diseases such as SARS-CoV-2 and cancer types, both hematological and solid tumors. Our cell bank project is supported by funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 (H2020) Research and Innovation program via a €4million grant, the largest such EU award to any UK company for the development of a healthcare therapeutic product. Cellular material is collected and stored from healthy donors, providing a source for TC BioPharm to manufacture next-generation ‘off-the-shelf’ GDT cell therapies for future clinical product development.

At TC BioPharm, we apply chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T) technology to gamma delta T (GDT) cells. This takes advantage of the endogenous gamma delta T cell receptor (TCR), and combines it with chimeric antigen receptors. This involves adding a transgene to the GDT cells which encodes for a truncated version of a conventional CAR, one which doesn’t contain a CD3ζ activating signal component. Combining the co-stim CAR with natural pan-cancer TCR-signaling from a GDT is at the heart of our unique CAR-T approach. The associated IP is exclusively owned by TC BioPharm. Our approach produces a CAR-T product with fewer side effects than conventional CAR-T.