BRISBANE, Calif., Nov. 6, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq:ATRA), a biopharmaceutical development company with a focus on innovative therapies for patients with debilitating diseases, today announced that its collaborating investigators at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) will present at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) 2014. Data will be presented regarding ongoing clinical studies with cytomegalovirus (CMV) T cell therapy. The meeting will be held in San Francisco December 6-9th, 2014.
Interim clinical data outlining safety and efficacy of third-party donor derived CMV-directed T cells will be reported. Translational data describing the molecular determinants of complete response to third-party donor derived CMV-directed T cells will be discussed at oral presentations during the meeting. Detailed information will be presented at the conference. Abstracts for these presentations can be accessed at http://www.hematology.org/Annual-Meeting/Abstracts/.
Details of the presentations and abstracts are as follows:
| Date & Time: Sunday, December 7, 2014 at 5:15 p.m. PST? |
| Title: “Third Party Donor Derived CMV Specific T Cells for the Treatment of Refractory CMV Viremia and Disease after Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant” ? |
| Publication number: 184 |
| Session: 721. Clinical Allogeneic Transplantation: Conditioning Regimens, Engraftment and Acute Transplant Toxicities: Infections in Transplant Recipients ? |
| Type: Oral Presentation? |
| Location: Moscone Center, West Building, 2009-2011-2022-2024 |
| Date & Time: Monday, December 8, 2014 at 7:30 a.m. PST? |
| Title: “Banked, GMP Grade Third Party T Cell Lines Specific for CMVpp65 Epitopes Presented By Certain Prevalent HLA Alleles More Consistently Clear CMV Infections in a Genetically Heterogeneous Population of HSCT Recipients” ? |
| Publication number: 309 |
| Session: 703. Adoptive Immunotherapy: Preclinical and Clinical Results |
| Type: Oral Presentation? |
| Location: Moscone Center, South Building, Gateway Ballroom 104 |
About T cells activated against CMV
T cells are a critical component of the body’s immune system and can be harnessed to counteract viral infections and some cancers. By focusing the T cells on specific proteins involved in cancers and infections, the power of the immune system can be employed to combat these diseases.T cells activated against CMV use a technology in which third-party donor derived whole blood is collected and enriched for donor T cells. The T cells are then exposed to certain antigens and the resulting activated T cells are stored for future therapeutic use in an appropriate partially human leukocyte antigen, or HLA, matched patient. CMV is a virus that can result in blindness, illness or death depending on the tissue it affects in those with weakened immune systems. The CMV program is currently in a phase 2 clinical trial (NCT01646645). For more information, please visit www.clinicaltrials.gov.
Atara Biotherapeutics has entered into an exclusive option agreement with MSK under which it has the right to acquire (pursuant to a negotiated form of license agreement) the exclusive, worldwide license rights to three clinical stage T cell therapies, including MSK’s CMV T cell therapy. The option has not been exercised.
About Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc.
Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical development company focusing on innovative therapies for patients with debilitating diseases. The company’s lead programs are focused on myostatin and activin, members of the TGF-beta family of proteins that have demonstrated the potential to have therapeutic benefit in a number of clinical indications.
CONTACT: MSK CONTACT: Andrea Baird, bairda@mskcc.org, 212-639-3573 MEDIA CONTACT: Tina Gullotta, tgullotta@atarabio.com. 415-287-2427 INVESTOR CONTACT: Tina Gullotta, tgullotta@atarabio.com. 415-287-2427
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