KaliVir Immunotherapeutics
Pushing the Limits of Viral Immunotherapy

Physicians have been intrigued by the prospect of leveraging viruses to treat cancer for more than a century. However, it is only recently that viruses (oncolytic) have become critical pieces in the battle against cancer and are proving quite efficient in killing or activating an immune response against tumor cells.

To take the effectiveness of oncolytic viruses a notch higher, many innovative biopharmaceutical companies are genetically modifying the viruses and enhancing the capabilities of precisely targeting cancer cells in patients. Bearing the torch in this endeavor is KaliVir Immunotherapeutics—a biopharmaceutical company that is revolutionizing viral immunotherapy by creating oncolytic viruses that can kill cancer cells while significantly minimizing damage to healthy cells.

The roots of this fast-rising name in the industry can be traced back to Stephen Thorne (a maven in viral immunotherapeutics) and Helena Chaye (a business expert with extensive knowledge in the biotechnology sector). The symbiosis of their expertise became the foundation of KaliVir, through which they began developing systemically deliverable oncolytic virus immunotherapies. “Our oncolytic virus immunotherapies combine the natural ability of viruses to kill cancer cells with proprietary mechanisms to stimulate anti-tumor immunity, modify tumor environment, and maximize targeted killing across all tumor types,” says Helena Chaye, CEO of KaliVir.

Among the company’s robust immunotherapy offerings, the one that stands out most is the vaccinia enhanced template (VET) platform— based on a potent oncolytic virus with multiple proprietary genetic modifications that enable the creation of multiple versions of the virus based on distinctive requirements. “By adding or removing specific genes from the oncolytic virus (VET), we can generate a unique oncolytic virus that can be customized and optimized to target specific transgenes in tumors

and terminate the cancer cells more effectively,” says Stephen Thorne, founder and chief scientific officer at KaliVir. Not to mention, VET also fosters better tumortargeted replication, enhanced viral spread to metastatic tumors, and faster viral spread within the tumor microenvironment.

Interestingly, the immunotherapeutic capabilities offered by the VET are further complemented by the KaliVir team’s extensive expertise in the industry. The company’s leadership, especially, possesses decades of experience in preclinical and translational development of novel cancer immunotherapies, including immune cell-based therapies, oncolytic viral therapies, and gene therapies. Even the rest of the workforce comes from a robust biopharmaceutical background, strengthening KaliVir’s foothold at the pinnacle of the industry.

With strong leadership at the helm and a motivated workforce driving KaliVir, the company is certainly making waves in the biopharmaceutical space. Even now, it is developing new product candidates in conjunction with renowned pharma partners. Although KaliVir’s product candidates created through VET are in the early stages of pre-clinical studies, the company expects to bring them to clinical development stage next year. “For the later stages of development, we will collaborate with a pharmaceutical partner and streamline the commercialization process,” notes Helena. What’s more? While focusing on the pre-clinical stages of its candidates, the company will bolster its efforts to get its products into clinics to deliver more personalized oncolytic virus therapies for cancer patients. “Our mission is to ensure a healthier tomorrow by helping destroy every cancer cell in patients with our viruses and ultimately finding a safer and sustainable cure for cancer,” conclude Helena and Stephen with conviction.