Engineering Immunity Against ALK-Positive Cancers
We develop next-generation cellular therapies that harness the body’s immune system to precisely recognize and destroy ALK-driven tumors.
A Precision Immunotherapy Strategy Built Around the ALK Oncogene
Our approach aims to address key limitations of existing therapies, including the emergence of resistance mutations and lack of long-term disease control.
At the core of our approach is the unique characteristics of our target.
Our approach is supported by a strong biological and immunological rationale: ALK is a key oncogenic driver with high, selective expression in tumor cells and limited presence in normal tissues. ALK-specific immune responses have been observed in patients, and therapeutic efficacy is enhanced through synergy with TKIs and immune checkpoint inhibitors. This foundation enabled the discovery of potent ALK-specific therapies..
TCR-T
For tumors where ALK is expressed intracellularly and processed into peptide-HLA complexes, ALKemist engineers autologous T cells with high-affinity T cell receptors (TCRs). These TCRs are derived through the identification of naturally processed, immunogenic ALK peptides presented by defined HLA alleles. The resulting TCR-T cells are capable of selectively recognizing and killing ALK-positive tumor cells across a broad range of solid cancers in HLA-matched patients.
CAR-T
In cancers such as neuroblastoma, where ALK is expressed as a membrane-bound receptor, ALKemist develops chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells that target the extracellular domain of ALK.
Personalized Power: The End-to-End Path of Autologous T Cell Therapy
Each step of our autologous T cell therapy—collection, engineering, expansion, and infusion—is designed to turn a patient’s own immune cells into targeted weapons against ALK-positive cancers.
