Weekly Industry 8｜Two news stories on gene editing therapies

Annual trend of Verve stock. Photo Source: MSN Money

In the stock market on Monday, VERV shares plunged 30.5% to 21.75. Shares of Beam Therapeutics (BEAM), whose technology is licensed by VERV and in which it has a stake, also took a hit, plunging 11.4% to 37.91. According to IBD Digital, VERV shares have a relative strength rating of 96/99, meaning VERV is in the top 4% of all stocks in terms of 12-month performance.

Photo Source: Verve

Nov. 10 (Bloomberg) — A small clinical trial has shown that CRISPR gene editing can be used to alter T-immune cells so that they recognize mutant proteins specific to an individual’s tumor. The approach was tested in 16 patients with solid tumors, including breast and colon tumors. Each patient received gene-edited T immune cells with up to three targets. After one month, five of the tumors stopped growing, while only two experienced side effects caused by the treatment.

The researchers first used algorithms to predict the protein mutations unique to each individual’s tumor that were most likely to elicit a T-cell immune response, then based on the results, they designed the appropriate T-cell receptor and inserted it into T-cells extracted from the patient, then injected the edited cells back into the patient’s body. Many scientists say this is a huge and daunting task, sometimes taking up to a year.

(a). Flowchart for manufacturing neoTCR. (b)(c). Two examples of neoTCR. Photo source: 【3】

Despite the low efficiency of this treatment, the researchers used relatively small doses of T cells this time to determine the safety of the method. But as technology advances, the researchers say, the editing cells will take less time to culture in vitro and may be more active when injected, so more pronounced effects are expected in the future. [2]

Works Cited

【1】 Daily, I. B. (2022, November 7). Verve Crashes After FDA Puts Kibosh On Next-Generation Gene Editor. Investor’s Business Daily. https://www.investors.com/news/technology/verv-stock-crashes-after-fda-halts-plans-to-begin-testing-gene-editor-in-people/

【2】CRISPR cancer trial success paves the way for personalized treatments. (November, 11).

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-03676-7