Base to Base biotech podcast 40: Anchored immunotherapy, and healing the skin

This week, we’re talking about skin and wounds, with Ned Swanson, president and chief medical officer at PolarityBio, and Nikolai Sopko, chief operating officer, chief scientific officer and director at PolarityBio; and we discuss anchored immunotherapy with Howard Kaufman, CEO of Ankyra Therapeutics.04:03 Ankyra Therapeutics34:31 PolarityBioAnchored immunotherapiesAnkyra Therapeutics, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, develops anchored immunotherapies that tether cytokines at the injection site to stimulate local immune responses while limiting systemic toxicity. The company’s technology is designed to unlock cytokines that have historically been limited by safety concerns.Its lead programme, ANK‑101 (tolododekin alfa), is an anchored IL‑12 construct. Early trials have demonstrated safety and local immune activation, and the company is now testing the drug in combination with checkpoint inhibitors for non‑small cell lung cancer. The platform is modular, allowing other immune payloads to be developed using the same anchoring chemistry.Ankyra recently began dosing patients in its phase 1b LANTERN trial, combining ANK‑101 with PD‑1/PD‑L1 inhibitors in non‑small cell lung cancer.The science of skinUtah-headquartered PolarityBio focuses on regenerative skin therapies for chronic wounds. Its flagship product, SkinTE, is an autologous heterogeneous skin construct designed to restore functional skin architecture in Wagner Grade 1 diabetic foot ulcers.The company’s development strategy centres on pivotal trials to demonstrate healing rates, durability, and safety, with regulatory and reimbursement pathways treated as critical for adoption. SkinTE has Breakthrough Therapy designation from the FDA.PolarityBio recently announced completion of its pivotal phase III trial, with final results expected in early 2026.To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email [email protected]