VALO-D102

VALO-D102 is a genetically modified oncolytic adenovirus developed by Valo Therapeutics. It serves as the viral backbone for the company’s lead immunotherapy product, PeptiCRAd-1. The virus is coated with tumor-specific peptides derived from MAGE-A3 and NY-ESO-1 neoantigens. This design enables selective infection and lysis of cancer cells while simultaneously stimulating both innate and adaptive immune responses against tumors. Mechanistically, VALO-D102 expresses immune-stimulatory molecules CD40L (CD40 ligand) and OX40L (tumor necrosis factor ligand superfamily member 4), which further enhance anti-tumor cytotoxic T-cell immunity by activating antigen-presenting cells and promoting T-cell proliferation. The platform aims to generate robust tumor-specific cytotoxic T-cell responses without requiring multiple genetically engineered viruses for different antigens. VALO-D102/PeptiCRAd-1 is being investigated in combination with pembrolizumab (a checkpoint inhibitor) in Phase I clinical trials for several solid tumors including melanoma, triple negative breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, and sarcoma subtypes such as synovial sarcoma and myxoid round cell sarcoma[1][2][3][6][7][9].