Lm Technology™

Advaxis’ Lm Technology uses live, attenuated bioengineered Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) bacteria to stimulate the immune system to view tumor cells as potentially bacterial-infected cells and target them for elimination.

We start with a live, attenuated strain of Listeria, then add multiple copies of a plasmid that encodes a fusion protein sequence including a fragment of the LLO (listeriolysin O) molecule joined to the antigen of interest. This fusion protein is secreted by the Listeria inside antigen-presenting cells, which has been shown to result in a stimulation of both the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system that also reduces tumor defense mechanisms, making it easier for the immune system to attack and destroy the cancer cells.

The Advaxis research platform is built on four elements of a cancer immunotherapy that may be clinically important.

The immune system can’t defeat cancer because

  • Cancer hides so that the immune system doesn’t recognize it
  • Cancer shields itself from destruction

Cancer is smart…

Advaxis Lm Technology TM is brilliant

Advaxis Lm Technology is under investigation and designed to stimulate a tumor-targeted immune response directed by plasmids

Attenuated listeria monocytogenes trigger a robust immune response

Lm delivers bioengineered plasmids that generate a fusion protein, tLLO-TAA

…so that cancer can be recognized

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TAA activates cytotoxic T cells targeted against the tumor

…and killed

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tLLO causes inhibition of Treg and MDSC function in the tumor microenvironment, reducing the tumor’s protective shield and enabling tumor destruction

The Advaxis Lm Technology™ platform is investigational.

Abbreviation Key

APC, antigen presenting cell; Lm, Listeria monocytogenes; MDSC, myeloid-derived suppressor cells; TAA, tumor-associated antigen; tLLO, truncated listeriolysin O, Treg, regulatory T cells