Poolbeg Pharma presents positive results for POLB 001

promising pre-clinical data on preventing cytokine release syndrome

Poolbeg Pharma has unveiled encouraging pre-clinical study data for POLB 001 at the 66th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting.

The study showed that all doses of POLB 001 significantly reduced clinically observed Cytokine Release Syndrome (CRS) scores, reinforcing its potential in preventing and treating cancer immunotherapy-induced CRS.

“These data presented at ASH are promising, demonstrating statistically significant cytokine inhibition and a dose dependent reduction in clinical CRS,” said Mark Sumeray, MD, Consultant Clinical Advisor for Poolbeg.

The study compared the effects of POLB 001 with Adalimumab, a gold standard anti-TNF antibody, in humanised tumour-bearing mouse models.

Mice received either placebo or POLB 001 at varying doses twice daily for five days. POLB 001 showed superior cytokine inhibition and significantly reduced clinical CRS scores in an anti-CD28 induced model.

“Addressing cancer immunotherapy-induced CRS holds the potential to greatly impact the treatment of hematological malignancies – enhancing safety and reaching more patients,” added Dr Sumeray.

POLB 001 significantly reduced peak serum levels of TNF, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, and MIP-1α, with other cytokines also showing reduced levels. No harmful effects were observed in other immunological and malignancy-related endpoints, further supporting its use in CRS prevention and treatment.

Presented by CEO Jeremy Skillington, PhD, the poster highlighted POLB 001 as a promising therapy for CRS associated with cancer immunotherapies.

The positive pre-clinical results underpin the development of POLB 001 for Phase 2 clinical trials as a prophylactic for immunotherapy-induced CRS.

Poolbeg continues to focus on innovative medicines targeting high unmet medical needs, with these results marking a significant step in advancing treatments for cancer immunotherapy-induced CRS.