Bolt Biotherapeutics Announces Scientific Advisory Board with the Appointment of Drs. Larry Fong, Roy Herbst and Bruce Roth

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Oct. 8, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Bolt Biotherapeutics, Inc., a private biotechnology company focused on unleashing the power of the immune system to treat cancer, today announced the addition of three world-class researchers to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB):

• Lawrence Fong, M.D., of the University of California, San Francisco
• Roy S. Herbst, M.D., Ph.D. of Yale Cancer Center / Yale School of Medicine
• Bruce D. Roth, Ph.D., retired Genentech executive and biotech research consultant

"I see first-hand the tremendous progress being made in cancer immunotherapy. Bolt's ISAC technology is among the most promising on the horizon given the encouraging preclinical tumor model results demonstrating complete regression of previously resistant tumors and induction of immunological memory, which promises increased durability of response for patients," stated Dr. Fong.

"From my work on resistance to current immunotherapies, there is a clear need for novel therapies that can treat patients who are refractory to immune checkpoint blockade, such as anti-PD-L1/PD1. Bolt's ISAC mechanism of action is very exciting with data showing strong anti-tumor effects in multiple preclinical tumor models and the bolstering of the innate and adaptive immune response," stated Dr. Herbst. "This approach could be very promising for cancer patients including those who do not currently have an active anti-tumor immune response to today's standard-of-care agents."

"Having pioneered and developed new therapeutic modalities across various disease states, I believe Bolt has tapped into something truly novel by bringing together the foundational knowledge of antibody drug conjugates and immune stimulants. As a chemist, the technology is exciting since it really opens up the landscape of molecular properties that can be designed into the small molecule payloads to elicit the desired innate immune activation. The range of possibilities for therapeutic applications of this platform are broad and exciting," stated Dr. Roth.

"We are truly honored to welcome Drs. Fong, Herbst, and Roth to our Scientific Advisory Board. These leading experts will bring substantial in-depth knowledge of cancer immunotherapy as well as drug discovery and development expertise that will be invaluable in assisting us to develop ISAC therapies for patients," stated David Dornan, Ph.D., senior vice president of research at Bolt Biotherapeutics.

About Lawrence Fong, M.D.

Lawrence Fong, M.D., is an Efim Guzik distinguished professor in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Dr. Fong is focused on developing immunotherapies for different cancers including prostate, kidney, bladder, melanoma, and GI cancers. As a physician-scientist, Dr. Fong also leads a translational immunotherapy laboratory. He has been involved in both pre-clinical and clinical studies for many cutting-edge immunotherapies. Dr. Fong obtained his M.D. at Stanford University, completed internal medicine training at the University of Washington, and an oncology fellowship at Stanford University with Drs. Ed Engleman and Mark Davis focused on tumor immunology. He served on the program committees and editorial boards for the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR). He is co-director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at UCSF and is the site primary investigator for the NCI-sponsored Cancer Immunotherapy Trials Network (CITN).

About Roy S. Herbst, M.D., Ph.D.

Roy S. Herbst, M.D., Ph.D., is ensign professor of medicine, professor of pharmacology, chief of medical oncology, director of the Thoracic Oncology Research Program, and associate director for translational research at Yale Cancer Center (YCC) and Yale School of Medicine. Dr. Herbst has worked over several decades as a pioneer of personalized medicine and immunotherapy, serving as principal investigator for numerous clinical trials for advanced stage lung cancers. This work led to the approval of several therapies (such as Gefitinib, Cetuximab, Bevacizumab, Axitinib, Atezolizumab, and Pembrolizumab), which have revolutionized the field and greatly enhanced patient survival. His work on "umbrella" trials has galvanized the field of targeted therapy and cancer drug approvals at the FDA. He works closely with public-private partnerships to develop large clinical studies, such as Lung-MAP. He is a member of AACR, where he chairs the Tobacco Task Force, as well as ASCO. Dr. Herbst's work published in Nature was awarded the 2015 Herbert Pardes Clinical Research Excellence Award by the Clinical Research Forum.

About Bruce D. Roth, Ph.D.

Bruce D. Roth, Ph.D. is best known as the inventor of Lipitor®, for which he has received numerous awards, including the 2013 Perkin Medal, the highest award given to industrial chemists in the United States. Dr. Roth is now active as a biopharmaceutical research consultant. Prior to founding his consulting practice, between the years of 2007 and 2017, he held positions of increasing responsibility at Genentech, the last one being senior vice president of gRED (Genentech Research and Early Development) small molecule drug discovery and co-leader of gRED research. Before that, he served as vice president of chemistry at Pfizer Global Research and Development, Ann Arbor Laboratories, and prior to that, was an adjunct associate professor in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry in the School of Pharmacy of the University of Michigan.

About Bolt Biotherapeutics' Immune-Stimulating Antibody Conjugate (ISAC) Platform Technology

The Boltbody™ platform consists of Immune-Stimulating Antibody Conjugates (ISAC) that harness the ability of innate immune agonists to convert cold tumors into immunologically hot tumors thereby illuminating tumors to the immune system allowing them to be invaded by tumor killing cells. Boltbody™ ISACs have demonstrated the ability to eliminate tumors following systemic administration in preclinical models and have also led to the development of immunological memory, which is predicted to translate into more durable clinical responses for patients.

About Bolt Biotherapeutics

Bolt Biotherapeutics, Inc., based in the San Francisco Bay Area, is a private biotechnology company developing Boltbody™ Immune-stimulating Antibody Conjugates (ISAC), a new class of immuno-oncology therapeutics that have eliminated tumors following systemic administration in preclinical studies and results in the development of immunological memory, which may lead to more durable clinical responses for patients. Bolt's technology is appropriate for a broad spectrum of antibodies targeting tumor antigens expressed on all types of cancer and therefore applicable to many types of patients, including those who are refractory to the current generation of checkpoint inhibitors. The company is led by a team with extensive oncology drug discovery and development experience. Bolt was founded by Dr. Ed Engleman, and its platform is based on technology exclusively licensed from Stanford University. The company is financed by world-class investors including Novo Holdings, Pivotal bioVenture Partners, Vivo Capital and Nan Fung Life Sciences. For more information about Bolt Biotherapeutics, please visit www.boltbio.com where you will find complete biographies of Bolt's SAB and management team members.

Contact:
Jennifer Williams
Cook Williams Communications, Inc.
360-668-3701
[email protected]

SOURCE Bolt Biotherapeutics, Inc.

Related Links

https://boltbio.com/