Merus Presents Preclinical Data Demonstrating Efficacy of Zeno in Cancer Models with High NRG1 Expression at the AACR Annual Meeting 2024

UTRECHT, The Netherlands and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Merus N.V. (Nasdaq: MRUS) (“Merus”, “the Company”, “we”, or “our”), a clinical-stage oncology company developing innovative, full-length multispecific antibodies (Biclonics and Triclonics), today announced preclinical data on zenocutuzumab (Zeno) in cancer models with high neuregulin 1 (NRG1) expression were presented at the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2024.

“Exemplary of our approach to developing multispecific antibodies, Zeno was selected utilizing unbiased assays to allow biology to teach us which is the best potential Biclonics. Thereafter, we continue to learn more both preclinically and mechanistically, to identify where the molecule holds potential,” said Cecile Geuijen, Chief Scientific Officer of Merus. “In this study, we examined the efficacy of Zeno in preclinical models expressing high NRG1 levels and found evidence of anti-tumor activity in multiple tumor types.”

​Zenocutuzumab, a HER2 × HER3 bispecific antibody, is effective in cancer models with high NRG1 expression​
Observations in the presentation include:

• Patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models (28 PDX models total) representing 21 different tumor types were selected based on high NRG1 expression in the respective tumor types
• Zeno induced significant tumor growth inhibition in seven of the 28 PDX models tested
• Zeno was also observed to:
  • Potently inhibit proliferation of N87 gastric cancer and SKBR-3 breast cancer cell lines at high NRG1 concentrations
  • Inhibit proliferation of HCC95, an NRG1-amplified lung cancer cell line, and block signaling through pathways involved in the regulation of cell growth and survival
• These data show that Zeno is effective in tumor cell killing in vitro and in vivo in high NRG1 expressing cancer models representing multiple different tumor types

The full presentation is available on the Publications page of our website.

About Merus N.V.
Merus is a clinical-stage oncology company developing innovative full-length human bispecific and trispecific antibody therapeutics, referred to as Multiclonics. Multiclonics are manufactured using industry standard processes and have been observed in preclinical and clinical studies to have several of the same features of conventional human monoclonal antibodies, such as long half-life and low immunogenicity. For additional information, please visit Merus’ website, X and LinkedIn.