Technology Platforms

Overview

Legend Biotech is currently discovering and developing a broad portfolio of cell therapies to help strengthen patients’ immune systems and fight disease.

We explore several innovative and evolving technologies to treat hematologic malignancies and solid tumors: autologous chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy (CAR-T), allogeneic non-gene-editing CAR-T, natural killer (NK) cells and CAR-γδ T cells.

Core Strengths

Today we have numerous therapeutic candidates in development—all of which are built on the three core strengths of our R&D teams:

  1. In-house antibody screening and engineering capabilities
  2. Diverse allogeneic platforms, including CAR-γδ T and CAR-NK, which may offer benefits for safety and chemistry, manufacturing and controls production
  3. Multiple armoring strategies to overcome challenges in treating solid tumors; together we are building a fully integrated cell therapy platform.
CAR-T

CAR-T cells are genetically engineered T cells that express a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR), a hybrid protein containing three parts: a tandem antigen-binding domain of an antibody; a transmembrane domain; and the signal transduction elements of the T cell receptor complex.

The CAR antigen-binding domain seeks out tumor cells that express the target cell surface antigen.

Once the CAR finds its target, it sends out molecular signals via its intracellular modules to activate CAR-T cells, resulting in the destruction of the target tumor cells.

Legend Biotech is actively developing cutting-edge CAR-T therapies to help address unmet needs in oncology.

Allogeneic

Legend Biotech sees the promise of allogeneic cell therapy and its potential benefits. We are exploring a range of versatile tools and cell types in pursuit of a truly “off-the-shelf” cell therapy.

CAR-γδ T

γδ T cells are a subtype of T cells that express a T cell receptor (TCR) composed of γ and δ chains. γδ T cells are distinct from αβ T cells in that they possess both innate immunity, like natural killer (NK) cells, and adaptive immunity, like αβ T cells. In addition, γδ T cells are capable of rapidly infiltrating tissues and can induce major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-independent anti-cancer activity, which makes γδ a promising platform for “off-the-shelf” CAR-T therapy.

Legend Biotech is developing an innovative CAR-T designed to enhance the persistence of CAR-γδ T cells in vivo, as well as a proprietary manufacturing process engineered to generate large-scale CAR-γδ T cells with enhanced cell fitness.

CAR-NK

Legend Biotech is developing an allogeneic CAR platform based on natural killer (NK) cells. NK cells serve on the body’s first lines of defense, working against virally infected cells or tumor cells. CAR-NK cells do not need priming and have several mechanisms to elicit responses to tumors that are not limited to the direct release of cytotoxic granules, antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), CAR-mediated killing or the secretion of inflammatory cytokines.

NK cells can naturally recognize features associated with cellular stress, which facilitates tumor-specific targeting and elimination. When engineered to express CARs, the antitumor effects of NK cells may be even more pronounced.

Non-gene-editing universal CAR-T

Our proprietary allogeneic CAR-T technology uses a non-gene-editing approach. Preclinical data indicated that this unique allogeneic CAR-T technology may reduce genomic interference and potentially simplify the chemistry, manufacturing and controls (CMC) process.

There is no guarantee that the agents discussed will receive health authority approval or become commercially available in any country for the uses being investigated.

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