“If the last 15 years were the age of the T-cell, the next 15 years are the age of immunity, specifically the dendritic cell and the macrophage,” Jonathan Kagan, Harvard immunologist and co-founder of Corner Therapeutics told In Vivo in this podcast interview.
Kagan dives deep into the science behind the immunotherapies he has been working on at Harvard and is now trying to translate to commercial success at Corner Therapeutics.
Kagan describes the importance of not just finding the right antigen to target with an immunotherapy, but of weaponizing the innate immune system by hyperactivating dendritic cells. Ultimately, the therapies he hopes to develop at Corner will be more selective and achieve a more durable response, whether in the context of oncology, infectious diseases or autoimmune disorders.
Timestamps:
Intro
1:00 - Jonathan’s career trajectory and personal mission
4:30 - The Corner Therapeutics platforms, focusing on activating dendritic cells and innate immune receptors
11:25 - An explainer: Toll-like receptors vs. cGAS-STING vs. RIG-I-like receptors
15:10 - Preclinical evidence from Harvard and Corner
18:00 - The versatility of Corner’s approach
20:15 - Corner’s pipeline and medium-term milestones
23:05 - Corner’s financial picture
24:00 - Development strategy: focus first on cancer and infectious diseases, then inflammation and autoimmune disorders
25:20 - The future of immunotherapies
