Marengo Nominates First Drug Candidate Under Strategic TriSTAR Collaboration with Ipsen and Welcomes Industry-Leading T-Cell Engager Expert, Saso Cemerski, Ph.D., to Accelerate Pipeline Expansion

• First partnered TriSTAR program advances into IND-enabling development
• Industry-leading expert in T-cell engager discovery and immune-cell activation, Saso Cemerski, joins as Senior Vice President, Head of Immunology, to accelerate expansion of Marengo's precision Vβ-directed T-cell engager pipeline

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Marengo Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering precision immunotherapy approaches for cancer and autoimmune diseases, today announced two important milestones reflecting the advancement of its TriSTAR™ platform: the nomination of the first development candidate under its TriSTAR strategic collaboration with Ipsen and the appointment of Saso Cemerski, Ph.D., as Senior Vice President, Head of Immunology.

This drug candidate nomination marks the successful advancement of the first program developed through the strategic collaboration established by Marengo and Ipsen in June 2024. It is the second candidate from Marengo's proprietary TriSTAR platform to enter IND-enabling development.

"Nominating a development candidate under our TriSTAR collaboration with Ipsen is a testament to the strength of our partnership and underscores the dedication and ingenuity of Marengo's research team," said Zhen Su, M.D., MBA, Chief Executive Officer of Marengo Therapeutics. "Our first-in-class precision TriSTAR trispecific T-cell engagers are designed to deliver on the promise of precision immuno-oncology by bringing the right T cells to the right tumors. We look forward to continuing our work with Ipsen to translate this innovation into meaningful clinical benefit for patients."

TriSTAR is a precision "armed" T-cell engager platform with a differentiated two-in-one mechanism of action, combining selective T-cell activation and expansion with tumor-directed engagement in a single molecule. By integrating Vβ-directed T-cell activation, built-in costimulation and tumor-antigen targeting, TriSTAR candidates are designed to generate and redirect a new pool of highly active memory T cells against tumors. This precision approach has the potential to improve the therapeutic index of T-cell engagement by enhancing antitumor potency in solid tumors while limiting the broad, indiscriminate T-cell activation associated with traditional CD3-directed T-cell engagers.

This milestone demonstrates continued progress across the collaboration's multiple programs and further validates the ability of the TriSTAR platform to repeatedly generate differentiated therapeutic candidates suitable for global clinical development. Marengo has led research and preclinical development for this program in partnership with Ipsen and is eligible for milestone payments under the collaboration. Ipsen will assume responsibility for all activities following development candidate nomination.

Appointment of Saso Cemerski, Senior Vice President, Head of Immunology

Building on this momentum, Marengo is strengthening its scientific leadership with the appointment of Dr. Cemerski, an industry-leading expert in T-cell engager discovery and immune-cell activation Dr. Cemerski will lead immunology research across Marengo's clinical and preclinical portfolio, help shape the company's scientific strategy and accelerate expansion of its pipeline of precision Vβ-directed T-cell therapies.

"Saso is one of the industry's foremost experts in T-cell engager discovery and immune-cell activation.," Dr. Su continued. "His experience building global research organizations and advancing multiple programs toward the clinic makes him uniquely suited to help us realize the full potential of TriSTAR. His appointment significantly strengthens our ability to expand what we believe is one of the industry's most differentiated pipelines of precision Vβ-directed T-cell engagers."

"Marengo has built an exceptionally innovative immunology platform with the potential to redefine how T-cell engagers activate and redirect the immune system," said Saso Cemerski, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Head of Immunology at Marengo Therapeutics. "The unique biology of selective Vβ T-cell activation creates an opportunity to overcome many of the limitations of existing T-cell engager approaches. I am excited to join this outstanding team and help translate the TriSTAR platform into a broad pipeline of next-generation therapies for patients."

Dr. Cemerski brings more than 15 years of experience leading immunology research and therapeutic discovery across biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Most recently, he served as Head of Discovery Immune Cell Engagement at AstraZeneca, where he led a global organization of more than 75 scientists, advanced multiple discovery programs toward clinical development, and helped evaluate and integrate externally sourced T-cell engager technologies. His prior experience includes a senior leadership role at Cue Biopharma, as well as positions at Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb and Xencor, where he contributed to the advancement of multiple antibody and small molecule therapeutics from discovery through clinical development.

About Marengo Therapeutics
Marengo Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biotech company, develops novel TCR-targeting antibodies that selectively modulate common and disease-specific T cell subsets of the germline TCR repertoire to provide lifelong protection against cancer and autoimmune diseases. With a passionate team of dedicated scientists experienced in immunology and oncology, and three proprietary platforms: Selective T Cell Activation Repertoire (STAR), Trispecific T Cell Engager (Tri-STAR) and T cell Depletor (MSTAR), Marengo is working to selectively target the right T cells in the right patients to create a world in which everyone's immune system can defeat cancer and autoimmune diseases. To learn more, visit marengotx.com.

About the TriSTAR™ Platform
Marengo's TriSTAR platform is a multispecific antibody-fusion platform built from the company's proprietary library of antibodies targeting germline-encoded variable Vβ regions of the T-cell receptor. TriSTAR candidates employ a differentiated two-in-one mechanism of action that combines selective Vβ T-cell activation and expansion with tumor-directed engagement in a single precision molecule. By integrating Vβ-directed T-cell activation, built-in costimulation and tumor-associated antigen targeting, TriSTAR candidates are designed to generate and redirect a new pool of highly active memory T cells against tumors. This precision "armed" engager approach has the potential to improve the therapeutic index of T-cell engagement by enhancing antitumor potency in solid tumors while limiting the broad, indiscriminate T-cell activation associated with traditional CD3-directed T-cell engagers.

Marengo Contacts:

Media | Peg Rusconi | [email protected]
Investors | [email protected]

SOURCE Marengo Therapeutics