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HexaBody®-CD38 (GEN3014) is a next-generation CD38-specific IgG1 molecule with a hexamerization-enhancing mutation that leads to highly efficient induction of complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) upon binding to CD38 positive tumor cells. HexaBody-CD38 is designed to induce strong anti-tumor activity in patients with CD38-expressing hematological malignancies through CDC and other Fc-mediated effector functions. Previously we have shown that HexaBody-CD38 induces highly potent CDC-mediated cell death in multiple myeloma (MM), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and B-cell non-hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) cells, including tumor cells in bone marrow samples from MM patients. In addition, HexaBody-CD38 demonstrated efficient ADCC and ADCP and induction of direct cell kill after Fc-crosslinking. Moreover HexaBody-CD38 induced strong inhibition of CD38 cyclase activity, which may contribute to reduction of immune suppression in the tumor microenvironment. In this study, we show that in a panel of 23 MM, AML and B-NHL cell lines HexaBody-CD38 induced CDC, with EC50 values on average 7-fold lower than those of the CD38-targeting mAb daratumumab, which is part of the standard of care for MM. Cytotoxic activity of HexaBody-CD38 showed a positive correlation with CD38 expression levels. HexaBody-CD38 was especially more potent than daratumumab in cell lines with lower CD38 expression. Sensitivity to HexaBody-CD38-induced CDC was correlated with lower expression levels of complement regulatory proteins, including CD46, CD55 and CD59. To exclude that the enhanced potency of HexaBody-CD38 resulted in lysis of healthy cell subsets known to express low levels of CD38, CDC in healthy donor leukocytes was assessed in vitro. HexaBody-CD38 (20 μg/mL) did not induce lysis of monocytes, B cells, T cells, granulocytes or erythrocytes, and only minor cytotoxicity of NK cells (median 13% lysis, range 9.5-55.1%). NK-cell lysis by daratumumab, assessed in parallel, was in the same range (median 8%, range 4.5-21.2%). Thus, HexaBody-CD38 shows superior potency in CD38-positive tumor cells while sparing healthy donor leukocytes and erythrocytes in vitro. The anti-tumor activity of HexaBody-CD38 in vivo was evaluated in patient-derived AML and B-NHL xenograft (PDX) models in nude mice. In a screen using 9 B-NHL PDX models in a 1-3 mice-per-treatment-group design, administration of two weekly doses of 5 mg/kg HexaBody-CD38 induced a strong anti-tumor response (relative tumor growth ≤10%, i.e. tumor stasis or tumor regression) in 2 models. Two models were classified as non-responder (relative tumor growth >70%) and 5 models could not be classified as either responder or non-responder (intermediates, relative tumor growth between 10 and 70%). A dose-response experiment in one of the responding models (Ly12638, 9 mice per group), confirmed potent anti-tumor activity of HexaBody-CD38, inducing complete tumor regression at a dose of 10 mg/kg (Figure 1A). In a screen using 5 AML PDX models in a 1-3 mouse-per-treatment-group design, HexaBody-CD38 (5 mg/kg) induced a strong anti-tumor response in one model. One model was classified as non-responder and the remaining 3 models could not be classified as either responder or non-responder (intermediates). A dose-response experiment in one of the intermediate models (AML11810), demonstrated statistically significant and dose-dependent anti-tumor activity of HexaBody-CD38 in an in vivo study using a classical 9 mice per treatment group design (Figure 1B). In summary, HexaBody-CD38 induced potent CDC in MM, B-NHL and AML cell lines, with superior potency compared to benchmark antibody daratumumab. HexaBody-CD38 was able to induce CDC in tumor cell lines with lower levels of CD38 expression, while sparing healthy leukocyte subsets. HexaBody-CD38 showed potent anti-tumor activity in vivo both in B-NHL and AML PDX models in nude mice. In these models, the contribution of mouse complement to the anti-tumor activity is limited and therapeutic activity is thought to be driven mainly through FcγR-mediated effector functions. This indicates that besides highly potent CDC, FcɣR-mediated effector mechanisms contribute to the preclinical activity of HexaBody-CD38 in hematological tumor models. These preclinical data support clinical investigation of HexaBody-CD38 in CD38 positive hematologic malignancies, including MM, AML, and B cell lymphomas. Figure Disclosures Hiemstra: Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Janmaat:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Boross:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. van den Brakel:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. ten Hagen:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. van Dooremalen:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Bosgra:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. De Goeij:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Andringa:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Kil:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Sasser:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Ahmadi:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Satijn:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Breij:Genmab: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company.

HexaBody-CD38 (GEN3014) is a novel, hexamerization-enhanced human IgG1 targeting CD38 with superior complement dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) activity, in addition to other effector mechanisms. HexaBody-CD38 carries the E430G mutation and binds a different epitope than the clinically validated CD38 monoclonal antibody daratumumab, which is currently being established as backbone therapy for the treatment of multiple myeloma. Introduction of the E430G mutationfacilitates the natural process of antibody hexamer formation through increased intermolecular Fc-Fc interactions after antigen binding at the cell surface (Diebolder et al., Science 2014; de Jong et al., PLoS Biol 2016). Improved IgG hexamer formation can increase binding of the hexavalent complement component C1q, thereby potentiating or unlocking antibody-mediated complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC). Preclinical data demonstrate highly potent CDC-mediated tumor cell kill in vitro in a panel of cell lines derived from hematological malignancies, including multiple myeloma (MM), B cell lymphoma and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In these cell lines, at the highest dose tested (10 µg/mL), HexaBody-CD38 induced approximately 2-fold more CDC-mediated lysis compared to daratumumab. Of note, in those cell lines that were responsive to daratumumab in CDC assays (>50% tumor cell lysis), CDC activity of HexaBody-CD38 was superior to daratumumab, with IC50 values for HexaBody-CD38 2.4- to 13-fold lower than for daratumumab. Moreover, HexaBody-CD38 unlocked CDC activity in 17 out of 28 tumor cell lines that were not sensitive to daratumumab in CDC assays ( In addition to superior CDC, HexaBody-CD38 was shown to induce comparable antibody-dependent cell mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) and antibody-dependent cell mediated phagocytosis (ADCP) as daratumumab. HexaBody-CD38 demonstrated more efficient inhibition of CD38 cyclase activity, which has been postulated to contribute to immune suppression in the tumor microenvironment. Importantly, in the presence of monocytes, HexaBody-CD38 treatment resulted in the removal of CD38 from the cell membrane of CD38 expressing cells, including T regulatory cells. This suggests downmodulation of CD38 as another potential mechanism to reduce CD38-generated metabolites and associated immune suppression. Finally, HexaBody-CD38 induced promising anti-tumor activity in vivo in PDX models of diffuse large B cell lymphoma in nude mice. Anti-tumor activity was associated with CD38 expression levels. In conclusion, HexaBody-CD38 is a novel CD38 antibody that shows superior capacity to induce CDC-mediated tumor cell kill compared to daratumumab, including in tumor samples from MM patients. Furthermore, HexaBody-CD38 induces FcγR-mediated effector functions and effectively inhibits CD38 enzymatic activity, either directly or indirectly by removal of CD38 from the cell membrane, thereby potentially contributing to immune activation. Targeting CD38 with HexaBody-CD38 could have therapeutic potential in daratumumab-naïve and -refractory MM patients, as well as in CD38-positive tumors in which daratumumab does not have single agent efficacy, such as DLBCL and AML. The promise of HexaBody-CD38 warrants further clinical investigation in CD38-positive hematological malignancies, including MM, B cell lymphoma and AML. Disclosures De Goeij: Genmab BV: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Janmaat:Genmab BV: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Andringa:Genmab BV: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Kil:Genmab: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Van Kessel:Genmab: Other: stock and/or warrants. Lingnau:Genmab: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Freidig:Genmab BV: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Mutis:Onkimmune: Research Funding; BMS: Research Funding; Janssen Pharmaceuticals: Research Funding; Celgene: Research Funding; Novartis: Research Funding; Amgen: Research Funding; Aduro: Research Funding. Sasser:Genmab: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Breij:Genmab: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Van De Donk:Celgene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; AMGEN: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Janssen Pharmaceuticals: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Servier: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Bayer: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Takeda: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Roche: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Ahmadi:Genmab Inc: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants. Satijn:Genmab BV: Employment, Other: stock and/or warrants.

Aim: The conventional clinical formulation of paclitaxel (PTX), Taxol®, consists of Cremophor® EL (CrEL) and ethanol. CrEL-formulated PTX is associated with acute hypersensitivity reactions, anemia and cardiovascular events. In this study, the authors investigated the effects of CrEL-PTX on red blood cells (RBCs) and compared these with the effects observed after exposure to the novel nanoparticle albumin-bound PTX, marketed as Abraxane®. Results: The authors demonstrate that CrEL is primarily responsible for RBC lysis and induction of phosphatidylserine exposure. Phosphatidylserine-exposing RBCs showed increased association with endothelial cells in culture. The authors also identified CrEL as being responsible for vesiculation of RBCs. This is the first time that excipients have been shown to be involved in microvesicle formation. Microvesicles were taken up by endothelial cells. Conclusion: These results offer new insights into the side effect profile of Taxol, which is likely to have implications for patients with erythrocyte disorders. Abraxane did not induce any of these effects on RBCs, indicating that the choice of excipients can have a pronounced influence on the efficacy and side effects of drug molecules. Original submitted 16th April 2012; Revised submitted 24th August 2012; Published online 5 February 2013

Background Phosphatidylserine exposure by red blood cells is acknowledged as a signal that initiates phagocytic removal of the cells from the circulation. Several disorders and conditions are known to induce phosphatidylserine exposure. Removal of phosphatidylserine-exposing red blood cells generally occurs by macrophages in the spleen and liver. Previously, however, we have shown that endothelial cells are also capable of erythrophagocytosis. Key players in the erythrophagocytosis by endothelial cells appeared to be lactadherin and αv-integrin. Phagocytosis via the phosphatidylserine-lactadherin-αv-integrin pathway is the acknowledged route for removal of apoptotic innate cells by phagocytes.Design and Methods Endothelial cell phagocytosis of red blood cells was further explored using a more (patho)physiological approach. Red blood cells were exposed to oxidative stress, induced by tert-butyl hydroperoxide. After opsonization with lactadherin, red blood cells were incubated with endothelial cells to study erythrophagocytosis and examine cytotoxicity.Results Red blood cells exposed to oxidative stress show alterations such as phosphatidylserine exposure and loss of deformability. When incubated with endothelial cells, marked erythrophagocytosis occurred in the presence of lactadherin under both static and flow conditions. As a consequence, intracellular organization was disturbed and endothelial cells were seen to change shape (‘rounding up’). Increased expression of apoptotic markers indicated that marked erythrophagocytosis has cytotoxic effects.ConclusionsActivated endothelial cells show significant phagocytosis of phosphatidylserine-exposing and rigid red blood cells under both static and flow conditions. This results in a certain degree of cytotoxicity. We postulate that activated endothelial cells play a role in red blood cell clearance in vivo. Significant erythrophagocytosis can induce endothelial cell loss, which may contribute to vasopathological effects as seen, for instance, in sickle cell disease.

The CD38 molecule, with its high expression on Multiple Myeloma (MM), is considered a suitable target for antibody therapy of MM. We developed daratumumab (DARA), a human CD38 monoclonal antibody (mAb) with direct and Fc-mediated cell killing activity. DARA induces killing of tumor cells, mainly via complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC), antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) (de Weers M. J Immunol 2011), and antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP) by macrophages (both murine and human). In addition, DARA induces apoptosis upon secondary cross-linking and modulates CD38 enzymatic function. DARA is currently in phase I, II and III clinical evaluation in patients with MM. Besides DARA, several other anti-CD38 mAb are in development; SAR650894 (SAR; clone 38SB19; Sanofi-Aventis) for MM and other CD38+ hematological malignancies, MOR03087 (MOR; Morphosys) for relapsed/refractory MM and Ab79 (Millenium/Takeda) which is in preclinical development. Similar mechanisms of action (MoA) are described for these mAb; nevertheless direct comparison studies would be critical for differentiation among these antibodies. . In this study, the efficacy of these anti-CD38 mAb was directly compared to DARA with respect to binding, apoptosis, CD38 ectoenzyme activity, and the induction of ADCC, ADCP and CDC. Surrogate antibodies of MOR, SAR and Ab79 were generated on the basis of protein sequences, as published in their corresponding patents families, and were attached to the backbone of DARA. Binding to CD38 expressing Daudi tumor cells was assessed by flow cytomery. All CD38 antibodies showed similar EC50 (~0.1 µg/mL) and maximal binding, except MOR which showed a lower apparent affinity (~0.3 µg/mL). Previously, CD38 amino acid residues Q272 and S274 were reported as critical for DARA binding. ELISA analyses using CD38 point mutants revealed MOR, SAR and Ab79 not to be affected by mutation of these residues. All CD38 mAb were equally potent in inducing ADCC of Daudi cells (40-60% lysis, 0.02 µg/mL), in classic Cr51-release ADCC assay using human PBMC effector cells (E:T ratio 100:1). Important differences were observed with respect to induction of CDC. SAR was unable to induce CDC in Daudi cells at concentrations up to 30 µg/mL, while DARA induced more than 80% lysis at concentrations above 1 µg/mL. Ab79 and MOR induced CDC, yet maximum lysis was 50% and 20%, respectively. Evaluation of Annexin V/propidium iodide (AnnV/PI) staining and activation of caspase-3 showed that only SAR induced AnnV/PI+ in Ramos cells (~40%) after 48 h exposure without Fc crosslinking, but did not activate caspase-3. In the presence of Fc crosslinking antibodies, all anti-CD38 mAb induced AnnV/PI+, caspase-3 mediated apoptosis. In enzyme activity assays using purified CD38 protein, SAR inhibited generation of cGDPR (indicative of the combined CD38 cyclase activity generating fluorescent cGDPR and hydrolase activity converting cGDPR into GDPR)more effectively than DARA (~70% vs. ~20% inhibition at 30 µg/mL). Ab79 had a modest effect on CD38 enzyme activity (~10% inhibition). MOR did not affect CD38 enzyme activity at all. The capacity to induce ADCP was only tested for DARA, MOR and Ab79 using mouse macrophages (mφ) as effector cells and Daudi target cells. mφ, isolated and matured from bone marrow cells, and calcein-AM labelled target cells (E:T ratio 1:1) were cultured in the presence of 0.0006-5 µg/mL antibody for 4 h. Non-phagocytosed target cells and mφ were collected and ADCP was evaluated by flow cytometry. All CD38 mAb induced mφ-mediated phagocytosis, as observed by a concentration dependent increase in the number of double positive mφ and killing of target cells. Ab79 was as effective as DARA (EC50 ~0.01 µg/mL) in ADCP induction, whereas MOR was less effective (EC50 0.04 µg/mL). In summary, DARA and surrogate mAb of MOR, SAR and Ab79 showed similar binding to cells and induced similar amounts of ADCC. Differences between these mAb involved the ability to directly induce apoptosis, to inhibit the enzymatic activity of CD38 and to induce ADCP. The most striking difference was observed for the ability to induce CDC, the MoA which is currently believed the most important mechanism of MM cell killing in the clinic. DARA efficiently induced high levels of CDC at low concentrations, whereas the other CD38 mAb were unable or less capable to induce CDC. Disclosures Lammerts van Bueren: Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Jakobs:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Kaldenhoven:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Roza:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Hiddingh:Genmab: Employment. Meesters:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Voorhorst:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Gresnigt:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Wiegman:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Ortiz Buijsse:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Andringa:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Overdijk:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Doshi:Janssen R&D: Employment. Sasser:Janssen R&D: Employment. de Weers:Genmab: Employment, warrents Other. Parren:Genmab: Employment, inventor on patents regarding daratumumab Patents & Royalties, stock and warrents Other.