The enhanced in vitro hematopoietic activity of leridistim, a chimeric dual G-CSF and IL-3 receptor agonist

The in vitro activity of leridistim was characterized for cell proliferation, generation of colony-forming units (CFU) and differentiation of CD34+ cells. In AML-193.1.3 cells, leridistim exhibited a significant increase in potency compared to rhG-CSF, SC-65303 (an IL-3 receptor agonist) or an equimolar combination of rhG-CSF and SC-65303. CFU-GM assays demonstrated that at 50% of the maximum response, the relative potency of leridistim was 12-fold greater than the combination of rhG-CSF and rhIL-3 and 44-fold more potent than rhG-CSF alone. In multi-lineage CFU assays, a combination of erythropoietin (rhEPO) and leridistim resulted in greater numbers of BFU-E, CFU-GEMM and CFU-Mk than rhEPO alone. Ex vivo culture of peripheral blood or bone marrow CD34+ cells with leridistim substantially increased total viable cells over cultures stimulated with rhG-CSF, SC-65303, or a combination of rhG-CSF and SC-65303. Culture with leridistim, resulted in a greater increase in myeloid (CD15+/CD11b+), monocytic (CD41-/CD14+) and megakaryocytic (CD41+/CD14-) precursor cells without depleting the progenitor pool (CD34+/CD15-/CD11b-). These results demonstrate that leridistim is a more potent stimulator of hematopoietic proliferation and differentiation than the single receptor agonists (rhG-CSF and SC-65303) either alone or combined. These unique attributes suggest that leridistim may enhance hematopoietic reconstitution following myelosuppressive chemotherapy.