ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. and Intrexon Corporation announced the signing of a cooperative research and development agreement with the National Cancer Institute for the development of adoptive cell transfer based immunotherapies genetically modified using the Sleeping Beauty ransposon/transposase system to express T-cell receptors for the treatment of solid tumors. The principal goal of the CRADA is to develop and evaluate ACT for patients with advanced cancers using autologous peripheral blood lymphocytes genetically modified using the non-viral SB system to express TCRs that recognize specific immunogenic mutations, or neoantigens, expressed within a patient's cancer.  Clinical evaluations of the ability of these SB-engineered PBL to express TCRs reactive against cancer mutations to mediate cancer regression in patients with metastatic disease will be performed.

Research conducted under the CRADA will be at the direction of Steven A. Rosenberg, M.D., Ph.D., Chief of the Surgery Branch at the NCI's Center for Cancer Research, in collaboration with researchers at ZIOPHARM and Intrexon.