Equillium, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQ), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing novel therapeutics to treat severe autoimmune and inflammatory disorders with high unmet medical need, today announced that a poster presentation was given over the weekend at ACR Convergence, the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology. The presentation highlighted that levels of urinary soluble ALCAM (sALCAM) could be a potential biomarker of disease severity in lupus nephritis (LN) and indicative of a patient’s response to treatment. The meeting, the world’s premier rheumatology conference, is taking place November 10 – 14, 2022 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

“The findings from this research represent an important step in the clinical development of itolizumab, which targets the CD6-ALCAM pathway and provides further support for its potential to be a meaningful therapy for lupus nephritis patients,” said Dr. Maple Fung, nephrologist and senior vice president of clinical development at Equillium. “Lupus nephritis is a serious illness that can lead to devastating long term complications including end stage kidney disease. A potential biomarker that can be diagnostic in a less invasive manner than a kidney biopsy, such as a urine sample, would be a tremendous advancement in the field. If that same biomarker could be indicative of response to treatment, it could be a breakthrough in the diagnosis and follow-up care for patients with this complex disease.”

Title: Urine ALCAM is a Strong Predictor of Lupus Nephritis

First Author: Dalena Chu, Associate Scientist, Equillium, Inc.

Session Title: SLE – Diagnosis, Manifestations, and Outcomes Poster II: Manifestations

Poster Number: 1478

Key Highlights, Summary and Conclusions from Presentation:

• Research demonstrated that urine ALCAM is a biomarker of disease severity in LN that could be indicative of disease progression and/or response to treatment
• Urine ALCAM correlates with currently accepted measures of LN, including UPCR (urine protein-to-creatinine ratio) and renal SLEDAI (systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index)
• Data suggests that urine ALCAM reflects changes in LN and could potentially be used in combination with other measures to inform clinicians of a patient’s disease early on, without invasive measures

About Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) / Lupus Nephritis (LN)

Systemic lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks its own tissues, causing widespread inflammation and tissue damage in the affected organs. It can affect the joints, skin, brain, lungs, kidneys, and blood vessels. Lupus nephritis is a serious complication of SLE, occurring in approximately 30% – 60% of individuals with SLE. In LN, the body’s own immune system attacks the kidneys, causing inflammation and significantly reducing kidney function over time.

About Itolizumab

Itolizumab is a clinical-stage, first-in-class anti-CD6 monoclonal antibody that selectively targets the CD6-ALCAM pathway. This pathway plays a central role in modulating the activity and trafficking of T cells that drive a number of immuno-inflammatory diseases. Equillium acquired rights to itolizumab through an exclusive partnership with Biocon Limited.

About Equillium

Equillium is a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging a deep understanding of immunobiology to develop novel therapeutics to treat severe autoimmune and inflammatory disorders with high unmet medical need. The company’s pipeline consists of the following novel immunomodulatory assets targeting immuno-inflammatory pathways. Itolizumab, a first-in-class monoclonal antibody that targets the CD6-ALCAM signaling pathway which plays a central role in the modulation of effector T cells, is currently in a Phase 3 study for patients with acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) and is in a Phase 1b study for patients with lupus/lupus nephritis. EQ101 is a first-in-class tri-specific cytokine inhibitor that selectively targets IL-2, IL-9, and IL-15. Equillium is currently enrolling patients in a Phase 2 proof-of-concept study of EQ101 for patients with alopecia areata. EQ102 is a bi-specific cytokine inhibitor that selectively targets IL-15 and IL-21. Equillium is currently enrolling patients in a Phase 1 study of EQ102, including healthy volunteers and celiac disease patients.

For more information, visit www.equilliumbio.com.

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