Conference Day Two
Thursday 16th March 2023
8:30 am Registration & Welcome Coffee
8:55 am Chair’s Opening Remarks
Facing the Funding Dilemma: Investors, Non-Profits & Biotechs Weigh In On the Variety of Funding Avenues for GBM Research
9:00 am Changes in the financing landscape for glioma drug development & ONC201
Synopsis
- Historical challenges of glioma drug development and funding constraints
- Improving landscape of investing in glioma drug development
- Applying lessons learned to ONC201 (dordaviprone) development
9:15 am Financing the Unfinanceable : An Optimistic Perspective From Europe
Synopsis
- Let’s learn from history: the temozolomide precedent.
- Let’s learn from others: the rare diseases examples.
- Being wise, not too big, not too early : a living dog is better than a dead lion.”
9:30 am
Panel Discussion: Navigating the Catch-22 With GBM Funding: How Can Investors & Companies Work Together to Solve This Dilemma?
Moderated by: Scott Rakestraw
Synopsis
- Addressing how to attract investment for the indication that the proposition has not yet been clinically proven
- Discussing gaining support for novel strategies, including combination trials especially when monotherapy has not been proven in isolation
- Evaluating preclinical models in their reliability to reflect clinical outcomes and which models appeal to investors the most
- Comparing the two main sources of funding- public vs private funding
- Transforming development and business models in GBM research
10:30 am Morning Networking Break
Synopsis
Meet and connect with your peers in this dedicated networking session.
Exciting Opportunities on the Horizon: Exploring Next Wave Therapeutic Modalities
11:00 am How Do Human Glioblastoma-Derived Tumorspheres Translate to an Orthotopic Intracranial Model System?
Synopsis
- Identifying potentially efficacious agents with 3D spheroids developed from primary patient tissue
- Testing single agent and combinatorial effect predictions with radiation in an in vitro setting
- Comparing in vitro x-ray radiation to in vivo intracranial radiation + TMZ
11:30 am Targeted Oncolytic Viruses Armed With Immune-Modulating Transgene Delivery for Enhanced Activity
Synopsis
- Understanding the critical components of efficient oncolytic virus entry and spread in GBM cells
- Unpacking the value of arming purposeful transgenes/payloads to attack the immune suppressive GBM microenvironment
12:00 pm PI3K Inhibition With Hypoinsulinaema – A Novel Approach to Maximizing the Impact of Targeted Therapy
Synopsis
- Reviewing the role of the PI3K pathway in glioblastoma
- Evaluating the rationale for combining PI3K pathway inhibition with hypoinsulinaemia
- Overview of an ongoing clinical trial to explore the combination
12:30 pm Delivering On the Promise of Glioblastoma Immunotherapy
Synopsis
- Local delivery in the brain eliminates the need to cross the BBB, opening new
GBM treatment opportunities - Combination therapy that can educate the immune system and generate
immune memory is required to obtain long-lasting anti-tumor responses - Sustained delivery of the therapy is required to bridge the innate and adaptive
immune responses to obtain immune memory
1:00 pm Lunch Break
Synopsis
Take this chance to meet the expert speakers, connect with your peers and explore our exhibition booths.
2:00 pm Viral Immunotherapy for Solid Tumors: The New Frontier
Synopsis
- CAN-2409 treatment is a systemic immunotherapy delivered intra-tumorally, which induces a CD8+ T cell-mediated response against the injected tumor and uninjected distant metastases. It is being tested in the clinic across multiple solid tumors
- CAN-3110 is a replication-competent HSV gene construct, which is able to replicate specifically in tumor cells while sparing healthy tissue. It is being evaluated in patients with recurrent high-grade glioma
- The enLIGHTEN™ Discovery Platform makes it possible to design new viral immunotherapies that could synergize with CAR-T cells and other cell therapies
2:30 pm Targeting OLIG2 in GBM and Medulloblastoma Using CT-179, an Orally Delivered Small Molecule Entering Clinical Development
Synopsis
- Scientific rationale for targeting OLIG2 in GBM, medulloblastoma, and other
gliomas - Preclinical data supporting the use of CT-179 alone and in combination with
standard of care therapies - Overview of the early-stage clinical development plan for CT-179 in adults with recurrent and newly diagnosed GBM
3:00 pm Afternoon Break
Spotlighting Nucleic Acid Approaches to Treating GBM- From RNA Vaccines to DNA Drugs
3:30 pm Making Glioblastoma a Target for Immunotherapy: A Road From Biomarker Discovery to Harnessing the Tumor Microenvironment
Synopsis
- Discussing the use of vaccines for the treatment of glioblastomas
- Identifying circulating biomarkers, the past and the present
- Addressing hurdles to overcome to implement the next steps
4:00 pm Uncovering the Use of DNA Medicines for the Treatment of Glioblastoma
Synopsis
- Explore how DNA as a therapeutic can be employed in the treatment of GBM
- Discover how combination agents work together to build an immune response against tumor antigens
- What additional advances can be utilized to continue to optimize clinical outcomes?
The Next Step in GBM Research: Combination Approaches
4:30 pm DNA Modifiers: A Novel Therapeutic Strategy for Targeting Known DDR-Deficient GBMs
Synopsis
- Design and discovery of novel covalent DNA modifying agents (DNA Modifiers) that exploit existing glioma DDR defects such as MGMT and overcome common clinical resistance mechanisms.
- KL-50: the first DNA Modifier to generate a dynamic bifunctional DNA modification that exploits differences in repair kinetics to generate time- and MGMT-dependent DNA interstrand crosslinks
- Proof of principle of KL-50 efficacy and tolerability across numerous GBM cell lines, invivo, and in PDX models with expansion of platform to other DDR biomarkers
5:00 pm Heavy Atom Nanoparticles for Radiation Enhancement of Glioblastoma
Synopsis
- Heavy atom nanoparticles (e.g. iodine nanoparticles or INPs) can be used for radiation enhancement
- The XOFT irradiator can be used to implement INP-RT of resected tumors
- Combination therapies with INP-RT: Potential for synergy with radiation sensitizers, chemotherapy and immunotherapy