8:55 am Chair’s Opening Remarks
9:00 am Leaders’ Fireside Chat:The Potential of Macrophage Therapies & Securing a Successful Future
Synopsis
- Consolidating clinical advances and robust data from the past year to instill in vivo proof of efficacy
- Identifying preclinical programs with exciting potential and novel strategies to target macrophages
- Reviewing current hurdles the field is facing, in research as well as funding, and plotting methods to increase awareness and investment into the space
Exploring Applications Beyond Oncology to Instill the Power of Macrophage in Inflammatory Disease
10:00 am Neuroimmune Interactions: From Basic Mechanisms to Novel Therapeutic Directions
Synopsis
- Discussing human genetics in neurodegeneration
- Examining the role of microglia in the brain
- Reviewing novel therapeutic approaches for neurodegenerative diseases
10:30 am Morning Refreshment Break & Networking
11:30 am Targeting Macrophages via GPR65 for Cancer Immunotherapy
Synopsis
- Showcasing GPR65: a genetically-validated innate immune checkpoint
- Pathios’ small molecule compounds can counteract the effect of acidic pH in bringing about a pro-tumorigenic phenotype in human and mouse macrophages
- PTT-4256 promotes pro-inflammatory macrophages, elevates key cytokines and chemokines, and recruits key effector cells to the tumor microenvironment
Exploring Next-Generation Therapies & Targets to Reinvent Macrophage Manipulation & Durability
12:00 pm siRNA-Based Cancer Immunotherapy
Synopsis
- Unveiling TTX: a novel platform for nucleic acid delivery to tumors
- TTX-siPDL1 is an RNAi checkpoint inhibitor with efficacy in preclinical PDAC
- Demonstrating how TTX-siPDL1 activity relies on both tumor cell and TAM targeting
12:30 pm Lunch Break & Networking
2:00 pm Panel Discussion:Adoptive Cell Therapy vs CD47 vs Repolarization: Exploring Potential for Each Mechanism to Influence Indication Selection
Synopsis
- Comparing targeting abilities of various macrophage targeted therapies to identify benefits and limitations
- Discussing characteristics of various indications to evaluate where each modality may be beneficial
- Highlighting where these different therapies could be applied to regenerative medicine and inflammatory disease
2:45 pm Afternoon Break & Refreshments
3:15 pm ENIGMAC™ Discovery Platform Enables Macrophage Target Discovery
Synopsis
- Incorporating novel assay systems and unique genome editing methods with multiomics bioinformatics analyses
- Utilizing a human iPSC line that yields phenotypically and functionally similar macrophages to human monocyte-derived macrophages
- Leveraging this system to support target validation and drug discovery of macrophage immunotherapies
3:45 pm Leveraging Macrophages in Next Generation Cancer Therapies
Synopsis
- Highlighting macrophage activation as an important component in cancer therapy
- Macrophage checkpoint inhibition to potentiate response
- Pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory macrophages; can both have a role in cancer therapies?
4:15 pm Mannosylated Amine Dextrans (MADs) as Small MW Drug Delivery Vehicles Targeting CD206 for Altering Macrophage Phenotypes
Synopsis
- MADs can deliver a wide variety of small molecule drug payloads specifically to CD206 (mannose receptor) expressing macrophages
- Understanding how MAD-drug constructs can induce durable changes in macrophage immune phenotypes that cannot be duplicated by the free drugs at any dose
- Revealing how MAD-drug constructs can increase the efficacy of anti-CTLA4 therapy in the CT26/Balb-c tumor model