IgM Antibodies and Other Alternative Frameworks: Promise and Progress

Moderator:
Janice Reichert, PhD, Chief Operating Officer, The Antibody Society
Speakers:
William (Bill) Strohl, PhD, President, BiStro Biotech Consulting LLC
Bruce Keyt, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer at IGM Biosciences
Overview:
Scientific innovations and advancements in antibody-based therapies, including alternative approaches using IgE, IgA, and IgM antibodies, are paving the way towards a new era of antibody medicines. Further development of new approaches beyond traditional IgG based efforts, may allow more patients with serious diseases to benefit. Early efforts to utilize these antibodies, with a focus on IgM, were challenging but significant progress has been made recently which highlights their potential as new therapeutic platforms.
IgM antibodies have a unique structure that addresses many of the limitations of traditional bivalent IgG antibodies. With 10 binding sites and a J-chain that can interact with different receptors, engineered IgM antibodies represent a new class of potential therapeutics that combine multivalency, high avidity, and high specificity.
These attributes have enabled the development of IgM antibodies that can more effectively bind and cluster receptors for induction of apoptosis, including IgM agonist of death receptor 5 (DR5), and bispecific T-cell engagers for treatment of solid and hematologic cancers, autoimmune/inflammatory diseases, and infectious diseases.
This webinar discusses the unique attributes of these antibodies and the potential applications of this approach to address unmet needs and create new opportunities for patients.
Key topics discussed:
Use of larger, alternative isotypes including IgE, IgA, and IgM as therapeutic antibody candidate scaffolds,
Advancements in IgM antibody development and history of engineering and therapeutic efforts,
New approaches to agonist cell signaling and bispecific binding of disease-specific targets with engagement of T cells, and
Clinical results that bring promise to realizing therapeutic potential of engineered IgM antibodies
.
By engaging with the audience, the speakers tackled thought-provoking themes and challenges in the field of IgM-based therapies.