What question did this study set out to answer?

To investigate bispecific antibodies targeting CD47 alongside tumor-associated antigens for effective solid tumor cell elimination.

April 5, 2026

Abstract 5532: Bispecific antibodies targeting EGFR and HER2 for effective killing of solid tumor cells via a safe CD47-SIRPA modulation

Key Points

To investigate bispecific antibodies targeting CD47 alongside tumor-associated antigens for effective solid tumor cell elimination.
Utilized κλ-body technology to design EGFR/CD47 and HER2/CD47 bispecific antibodies.
Conducted in vitro assays to test antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP) and antibody-directed cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC).
Evaluated the effects of different affinity levels and binding regions on tumor cell killing efficiency.
EGFR/CD47 and HER2/CD47 bsAbs induced effective ADCP and ADCC against tumor cells with varying expression of EGFR or HER2.
Killing activity correlated with both the affinity of the tumor-associated antigen arm and the binding region on the extracellular domain.
Clinical use of NI-1801 has shown safety and promising anti-tumor activity in ovarian cancer patients.

Abstract

Abstract INTRODUCTION: The CD47-SIRPα axis is a crucial immune checkpoint, allowing tumor cells to evade immune destruction. Initial efforts to target CD47 with monoclonal antibodies and SIRPa-Fc fusion proteins encountered significant hurdles due to ubiquitous and abundant CD47 expression in particular on blood cells (including RBC and platelets). To overcome the limitation of mono-specific CD47 targeting, we generate bispecific antibodies (bsAbs) that block CD47 selectively on tumor cells, upon co-engagement of a tumor-associated antigen (TAA) on the cell surface. Harboring an immunologically active Fc portion (human IgG1 Fc) these TAA/CD47 bsAbs mediate efficient tumor cell killing through antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP) and antibody-directed cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC). Importantly, this strategy has now been clinically validated: NI-1801, our mesothelin/CD47 bsAb, has demonstrated selective and safe CD47 targeting together with encouraging antitumor activity in heavily pretreated ovarian cancer patients (1). METHODS: EGFR/CD47 and HER2/CD47 bispecific antibodies were assembled using the κλ-body technology/platform (2). For that goal, high affinity antibody arms specific to different regions of the extracellular domains of EGFR or HER2 were paired with a low affinity anti-CD47 arm. The resulting hIgG1 bsAbs were tested in vitro for activity in ADCP assays with TAA-positive tumor cells and monocyte-derived macrophages as effector cells, and in ADCC assays using unfractionated PBMCs as effector cells. RESULTS: The EGFR/CD47 and HER2/CD47 bsAbs efficiently induce ADCP and ADCC of tumor cell expressing varying levels of EGFR or HER2, respectively, including low level-expressing cancer cell lines. Interestingly, we could observe that the killing activity depended not only on the affinity of the TAA arm, but also on the region of the ECD bound by the TAA arm, suggesting that the geometry of the antigen-co-engagement on tumor cell surface may affect the efficiency of the immunological synapse. This was particularly apparent when comparing the killing activity mediated by different HER2xCD47 bsAbs. CONCLUSION: The “unbalanced affinities” design of TAA/CD47 bispecific antibodies effectively addresses the safety and pharmacokinetic liabilities observed with monospecific CD47 antibodies. Importantly, our clinical experience with NI-1801 (MSLN×CD47) validates both the safety and the potential clinical benefit of this tumor-restricted CD47-blocking strategy (1). Together, these findings support TAA/CD47 bsAbs as a valuable addition to the anti-cancer armamentarium, with the EGFR/CD47 and HER2/CD47 bsAbs described here representing promising development candidates. (1) De La Motte Rouge T. ESMO 2025 (Abstract #1512O) (2): Fischer N. Nat Commun, 2015 Feb 12:6:6113 Citation Format: Eric Hatterer, Vanessa Buatois, Alizée Viandier, Emeline Rousset, Cécile Raymond, Adeline Lesnier, Pauline Lloveras, Christelle Mougin, Ulla Ravn, Pauline Malinge, Frederic Bollin, Limin Shang, Walter Ferlin, Nicolas Fischer, Jose Saro, Krzysztof Masternak, . Bispecific antibodies targeting EGFR and HER2 for effective killing of solid tumor cells via a safe CD47-SIRPA modulation abstract. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2026; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2026 Apr 17-22; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2026;86(7 Suppl):Abstract nr 5532.

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