ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals has shown Chinese biotechs are far from immune to the pressures to prioritize pipelines. Eighteen months after listing in Hong Kong, the company has stopped development of two clinical programs and abandoned plans to build a manufacturing facility.
Shanghai-based ImmuneOnco raised 319 million Hong Kong dollars ($41 million) to fund a broad pipeline of drug candidates when it went public in 2023. ImmuneOnco allocated a chunk of the money for the development and planned launch of IMM2520, a CD47×PD-L1 bispecific that it named as a key product. The biotech set aside a further 10% of its IPO haul for a planned trial of anti-CD24 antibody IMM47.
ImmuneOnco revealed (PDF) a shift in its plan after the Hong Kong stock market closed Tuesday. The biotech has “strategically terminated” development of IMM2520 and IMM47, it said.
“In light of evolving industry dynamics, the group continues to optimize the use of existing resources,” the biotech said in a statement. “We are refocusing and reallocating these resources to expedite the clinical development of our most promising candidates. This strategic realignment will enable us to maximize our impact and effectively address the needs of patients.”
ImmuneOnco received clearance to test IMM2520 in humans in China and the U.S. late in 2022. A study started in China in March 2023 and had enrolled 26 solid tumor patients across six dose cohorts by the end of 2024. One patient had a partial response. ImmuneOnco designed the bispecific to simultaneously activate macrophages and T cells.
CD47 programs at other biotechs have failed to live up to expectations, with Gilead Sciences' $4.9 billion bet on Forty Seven the highest-profile casualty. ImmuneOnco retains a strong interest in CD47. A fusion protein and bispecific that hit the “don’t eat me” target remain part of the biotech’s plans.
IMM47, the other program terminated by ImmuneOnco, entered the clinic in 2023. The biotech bet on the antibody in the belief hitting CD24 would suppress immune inhibitory signals that tumor cells send to macrophages, natural killer cells and T cells. ImmuneOnco saw the candidate’s potential to increase the number of macrophages in tumors as a good fit for PD-1/L1 combinations.
Backing away from that vision frees up resources to spend on assets including IMM01, which the biotech has designated as its core product. The fusion protein is designed to activate macrophages by blocking a CD47 interaction. ImmuneOnco started a phase 3 trial in chronic myelomonocytic leukemia late last year.