WCLC 2022 | The rationale behind the MIF-targeting antibody ON203 for solid tumors

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a pleiotropic cytokine that drives tumorgenic signaling. Previously, MIF had been considered an “undruggable” target due to it being constitutively expressed and stored in the cytoplasm in normal tissue. Until, the founders of OncoOne discovered an isoform of MIF, named oxMIF, that is differentially expressed in healthy and diseased tissue and can be detected in solid tumors. Christine Landlinger-Schubert, PhD, OncoOne, Klosterneuburg, Austria, shares insight into the second generation anti-oxMIF antibody, ON203, designed to optimally penetrate solid tumors. ON203 inhibits MIF-mediated tumorigenic signaling and exerts cytotoxic functions via the induction of antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity and antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis, holding the potential to overcome the previous hurdles in targeting MIF and exert anti-tumorigenicity in solid tumors. This interview took place at the IASLC 2022 World Conference on Lung Cancer congress in Vienna, Austria.