ALVR108: An allogeneic, off-the-shelf virus-specific T cell (VST) therapy targeting Human Herpesvirus-8
Serious Diseases Associate with Human Herpesvirus-8
HHV-8 is a herpesvirus that establishes life-long latency after primary infection. Though primary HHV-8 infection is usually asymptomatic, reactivation in immunocompromised individuals, such as those infected with human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, or transplant recipients.
Reactivated Infections
A reactivated HHV-8 infection can result in a range of serious diseases, including Kaposi Sarcoma (KS), primary effusion lymphoma (PEL), and multi-centric Castleman’s disease (MCD). These diseases each lack effective standard of care treatments that can have a meaningful benefit for patients.
Development Plan
Preclinical data demonstrated that ALVR108 has potent antiviral activity against HHPV-8. ALVR108 may be provided to patients who are at risk of developing KS, PEL, or MCD.
The seroprevalence of human herpesvirus-8 is estimated to be between 1-5% in the United States, 10-20% in certain Mediterranean countries, and 30-80% in parts of sub-Saharan Africa.