On January 12, 2021, OX2 Therapeutics, Inc. (https://ox2therapeutics.com/), a privately held Minneapolis company, announced that it had treated its first patient in a phase one human trial of a new treatment developed to combat recurrent high-grade brain tumors. “This is a first-of-its kind immunotherapy that works to treat one of the most aggressive and deadly cancers today,” said Christopher Moertel, MD, OX2 Therapeutics, Inc. “Central nervous system cancers are the number one cause of cancer-related mortality in children, and a major cause of morbidity and mortality in adults.” OX2 Therapeutics developed the first immune checkpoint peptide platform targeting the immune system to attack solid tumors. Focusing on high-grade gliomas, OX2 Therapeutics has been treating dogs diagnosed with spontaneous high-grade glioma in a canine clinical trial at the University of Minnesota, Veterinary Hospital. “This is the first therapy Dr. Olin and I have used to significantly extend the life of dogs with high-grade gliomas with no adverse events,” said G. Elisabeth Pluhar, DVM, PhD, Director of the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine’s Canine Brain Tumor Program (https://vetmed.umn.edu/centers-programs/clinical-investigation-center/current-clinical-trials/canine-brain-tumor-clinical-trials-program). The OX2 peptide, known as CD200AR-L, is a single peptide that has the potential to replace the toxic antibody therapies that are currently used to block immune checkpoints,” stated Michael Olin (photo), PhD, OX2 Therapeutics, Inc.Login Or Register To Read Full Story