Cantargia Announces IL-17 as Second Target for Bispecific CAN14 Antibody

“With CAN14, we aim to raise the bar for treating chronic inflammation by targeting multiple disease-driving pathways in a single antibody. Combining our IL1RAP expertise with the clinically validated IL-17 pathway gives us a strong foundation to develop a differentiated therapy for patients who need better treatment options,” said Hilde Steineger, CEO of Cantargia.

CAN14 is a preclinical bispecific antibody generated from the CANxx discovery engine and built on the scientific foundation established through CAN10. It is designed to block IL-1, IL-33 and IL-36 signaling through IL1RAP while also targeting IL17.

Chronic inflammatory diseases are rarely driven by a single pathway. They persist through networks of cytokines that reinforce one another, and this redundancy helps explain why many patients do not achieve complete or lasting responses with current single-pathway therapies. This is the main opportunity with IL1RAP as a target in inflammation, blocking three pathways with one drug. With CAN14, Cantargia expands on this concept by combining inhibition of IL1RAP-mediated signaling with IL-17 inhibition in a single molecule.

IL-17 is one of the most clinically validated targets in immunology, with approved therapies across several chronic inflammatory diseases. Published research has demonstrated functional interplay between IL-17 and IL-1 family cytokines, particularly IL-1 and IL-36, with these pathways reinforcing one another in inflammation. This provides a strong biological rationale for combining IL1RAP and IL-17 inhibition, with the potential to achieve deeper control of disease-driving inflammation than targeting either pathway alone.

By developing CAN14, we thus combine our deep knowledge of IL1RAP biology and antibody development with a clinically validated inflammatory pathway. This positions us in an attractive area of biologics development and may create future partnering opportunities. The program is currently advancing through preclinical development.