Clinical Update on ST101, a Peptide Antagonist of C/EBP-beta in Development for Glioblastoma
Abi Vainstein Haras
Chief Medical Officer, Sapience Therapeutics, Inc.
ST101 is a first-in-class, selective peptide antagonist of the oncogenic transcription factor CCAAT/Enhancer Binding Protein Beta (C/EBPβ).C/EBPβ is a master regulator of mesenchymal transformation in GBM and is required for the maintenance of immunosuppressive tumor-associated macrophage populations. In an ongoing phase 1/2 clinical study in Glioblastoma (NCT04478279), monotherapy with ST101 showed blood-brain-barrier penetration, target engagement and clinical activity in three different patient cohorts.
Dr. Abi Vainstein-Haras is the Chief Medical Officer of Sapience. Dr. Vainstein brings more than fifteen years of experience in oncology drug development and treatment of patients with cancer and other diseases. She joins Sapience from BioLineRx, where she spent the last eight years serving in multiple roles of increasing responsibility, most recently serving as Chief Medical Officer since January 2021. BioLineRx is a biopharmaceutical company with a focus in oncology, with late-stage programs in Phase 2 and 3 for difficult-to-treat cancers like solid tumors and hematological diseases. Prior to being named Chief Medical Officer, she served as Vice President of Clinical Development and Senior Medical Director, where she was responsible for the clinical development of all clinical phase projects. Prior to joining BioLineRx, she was the Director and Clinical Program Leader at Teva for COPAXONE®, a medication used to treat multiple sclerosis (MS), and before that, she served in several medical positions in the Innovative R&D team at Teva. Dr. Vainstein holds an M.D. from the University of Buenos Aires, is licensed to practice medicine in Israel and has authored twenty-five research presentations and publications.