Mgta-456, a Cell Therapy Utilizing Expansion of CD34+ Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSC), Improves HLA Matching for Adult Recipients, Promotes Faster Hematopoietic Recovery and Enables Uniform Engraftment with Less Acute Graft-Vs-Host Disease (GVHD)

Abstract

<h3>Background</h3> HSC dose and HLA match are risk factors that impact mortality using cord blood units (CBU) in transplant. Low CD34+ doses result in prolonged cytopenia and higher graft failure risk. A minimum cell dose of 3.0 × 10⁷ total nucleated cells (TNC)/kg has generally been required in CBU selection; however, cell dose limits often require the use of a 2^nd unit and markedly limits the availability of 7-8/8 HLA-matched units in larger patients. MGTA-456 is a cell therapy product utilizing an aryl hydrocarbon receptor antagonist for expansion of CD34+ HSCs <i>in vitro</i>. In prior studies with fresh MGTA-456, 36 patients with hematologic malignancies demonstrated rapid neutrophil recovery and 100% engraftment. This study (NCT03674411) will evaluate the safety and efficacy of cryopreserved MGTA-456 and the effectiveness of lowering the TNC threshold of the selected CBU to 1.0 × 10⁷ TNC/kg before expansion to improve HLA match. <h3>Methods</h3> 13 patients aged 2-47 years (12-159 kg) with high-risk hematologic malignancy were enrolled with 11 transplanted to date. Patients received cyclophosphamide 120 mg/kg, fludarabine 75 mg/m2 and total body irradiation 1320 cGy or a busulfan-based regimen for children ≤3 years of age prior to MGTA-456 with cyclosporine/mycophenolate mofetil prophylaxis. G-CSF began the day after infusion until the neutrophil count exceeded 2500/uL for 3 days. <h3>Results</h3> MGTA-456 contained a median 2.3 × 10⁹ CD34+ cells (range, 0.65-8.0) after expansion (422-fold expansion of CD34+ cells [range, 219-1313]). Neutrophil recovery occurred in all patients with a median of 15 days (range, 0-31), similar to recipients of fresh MGTA-456 in a prior study (median 14 days) and significantly faster than in recipients of unmodified CBUs (median 25 days). Median platelet recovery was 41 days (range 24-49) vs 64 days with unmodified CBUs. MGTA-456 CD34+CD90+ content strongly correlated with speed of neutrophil recovery (Fig. 1), consistent with preclinical murine data showing CD34+CD90+ cells represent the true engraftable HSC population. Lowering the TNC requirement to 1.0 × 10⁷ TNC/kg for CBU selection pre-expansion improved HLA match and/or eliminated the need for double CBU transplant in all 5 patients weighing >80 kg. Three patients received 8/8 grafts who would have otherwise received 1 or 2 6/8 units (n=2) or two 7/8 units (n=1) which may account for the low incidence of aGVHD overall (3 cases of Grade 1-2 and no Grade 3-4). With a follow-up of 5.2 months (0.4-8.5 months), all patients are alive. <h3>Conclusion</h3> Cryopreserved MGTA-456 cell therapy resulted in rapid and 100% engraftment with speed of neutrophil recovery correlating with CD34+CD90+ cell dose in patients with high risk hematologic malignancy. Expansion of smaller CBUs increases the chance of finding a better HLA match, particularly for adults, thus reducing the barriers associated with low cell dose and poor HLA match in CBU transplantation.