Pilatus Biosciences, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing novel metabolic checkpoint immunotherapies for liver and gastrointestinal cancers, today announced a clinical trial collaboration with Roche. Under the terms of the agreement, Roche will provide atezolizumab (Tecentriq®), its anti-PD-L1 therapy, to support Pilatus’ upcoming first-in-human Phase 1 trial evaluating PLT012 in combination with atezolizumab in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

PLT012 is Pilatus’ lead immunomodulatory candidate designed to reprogram the fibrotic and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) characteristic of HCC. The investigational combination will be assessed in Pilatus-sponsored clinical trials to assess safety and tolerability.