Cryptic Peptide hTERT Neoantigen Immunotherapy

Cryptic Peptide hTERT Neoantigen Immunotherapy is a preclinical-stage cancer vaccine program being developed by Jinwei Biotechnology. The therapy targets Human Telomerase Reverse Transcriptase (hTERT), an enzyme that is overexpressed in approximately 90% of human cancers but absent in most somatic cells, making it a nearly universal tumor-associated antigen. The "cryptic" nature of the peptides refers to specific hTERT sequences that possess a low affinity for MHC molecules and are not typically presented to the immune system, thereby avoiding the central tolerance that often limits the efficacy of vaccines targeting dominant self-antigens. The program utilizes two distinct delivery modalities: a synthetic peptide vaccine and a lentiviral vector system designed to induce a robust T-cell mediated antitumor response. It is currently being evaluated for the treatment of various malignancies, including lung, digestive tract, prostate, breast, kidney, and liver cancers.

Other names

hTERT cryptic peptide vaccinehTERT neoantigen immunotherapy