Caribou Bio leaps on early data for vispa-cel

US clinical-stage CRISPR genome-editing company Caribou Biosciences (Nasdaq: CRBU) today announced positive results from its ongoing ANTLER Phase I clinical trial evaluating vispacabtagene regedleucel (vispa-cel; formerly CB-010), an allogeneic anti-CD19 CAR-T cell therapy, in patients with relapsed or refractory B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (r/r B-NHL).

Caribou’s shares rose as much as 50% in pre-market activity, and were still up 19.3% at $2.89 by mid-morning.

“The ANTLER data mark an exciting advancement for the field of cellular immunotherapy,” said Dr Mehdi Hamadani, professor of medicine and section chief of hematologic malignancies at the Medical College of Wisconsin and an investigator on the ANTLER trial. ,“ This clinical dataset demonstrates vispa-cel’s efficacy and durability are comparable to autologous CAR-T therapies, yet its off-the-shelf availability and favorable tolerability profile make it well suited for outpatient administration at both large academic centers and sophisticated community hospitals. This combination of robust clinical activity and accessibility could significantly broaden patient access to transformative CAR-T cell treatments, particularly for those who cannot wait or are ineligible for transplantation or autologous CAR-T cell therapies,” he noted.