CAN10

CAN10 – Anti-IL1RAP antibody for treatment of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases

Mechanism of action

IL1RAP plays an important role in inflammatory processes and is necessary for transferring signals from the IL-1 molecule as well as the IL-33 and IL-36 molecules. These can trigger inflammation and play a central role in several autoimmune and inflammatory disorders.

Cantargia has developed the CAN10 antibody which, by binding IL1RAP, can block all these signalling pathways simultaneously. This function provides CAN10 with great potential for treatment of several diseases where CAN10 could achieve a broader and stronger effect compared to treatments aimed at the individual signalling pathways.

In the CAN10 project, Cantargia is developing an antibody that blocks IL-1, IL-33 and IL-36 for treatment of the life-threatening diseases myocarditis and systemic sclerosis.

Additionally, CAN10 is engineered to minimize effector cell binding. Thus, unlike nadunolimab (CAN04), CAN10 does not induce cell killing by Antibody-Dependent Cellular Cytotoxicity (ADCC).

CAN04 and CAN10 differ in their functional profiles, with CAN04 designed for treatment of cancer and CAN10 for treatment of autoimmune or inflammatory disease.

Preclinical development

CAN10 focuses on systemic sclerosis and myocarditis, diseases for which CAN10 has shown very strong effects in preclinical models.

In several models of systemic sclerosis, CAN10 reduced skin thickening as well as the uncontrolled scar tissue formation, so-called fibrosis, in the lungs. These are both typical symptoms for this disease. In two different models of myocarditis, CAN10 also reduced inflammation and fibrosis and counteracted the deterioration in cardiac function, an effect which was stronger compared to an antibody that only blocks the beta form of interleukin-1.

Clinical development

The CAN10 phase I clinical trial will investigate the safety of various single and multiple dose levels of CAN10 given intravenously to healthy volunteers or subcutaneously to psoriasis patients. Up to 80 subjects may be included in the trial, which started in September 2023.

Manufacture and quality control

CAN10 is manufactured in biological production systems. A stable cell line expressing the antibody has been developed, and manufacturing is performed by BioInvent.

CAN10 is produced by means of cell culturing followed by purification in several stages and finally filling into vials that are distributed to hospitals for use in the clinical development work. CAN10 is suitable for both intravenous and subcutaneous infusion.