JNJ-78306358, a first-in-class bispecific T cell engaging antibody targeting CD3 and HLA-G

T cell-redirecting bispecific antibodies (bsAbs) to treat advanced stage solid tumors are gaining interest after recent clinical successes. The immune checkpoint human leukocyte antigen G (HLA-G) is expressed in several tumor types while in normal tissues expression is limited. Here, we describe JNJ-78306358, a T cell-redirecting bispecific antibody (bsAb) to treat advanced stage solid tumors. JNJ-78306358 binds with high affinity to the α3 subunit of HLA-G on cancer cells and with purposely engineered weaker affinity to CD3ε on T cells. JNJ-78306358 induced potent T cell-mediated cytotoxicity of HLA-G-expressing solid tumors in vitro and in vivo. JNJ-78306358 also blocked the interaction of HLA-G with its receptors in vitro, indicating that immune checkpoint blocking may contribute to its anti-tumor activity. These results suggest that T cell-redirection against HLA-G could be a potent and effective treatment for a wide range of solid tumor indications.