CAMBRIDGE, Mass.—Clinical-stage company Jounce Therapeutics Inc. shared preclinical data at the recent 2019 American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting regarding its first tumor-associated macrophage program, JTX-8064. The compound is a specific, potent antagonist antibody of LILRB2 (leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor B2, ILT4), which binds to its ligands and maintains an immuno-suppressive state in macrophages. By blocking ligand binding to LILRB2, it’s thought that JTX-8064 triggers an immune-activating state in macrophages, a reprogramming that could help to enhance the anti-tumor immune response. Jounce Therapeutics intends to file an Investigational New Drug application and launch a Phase 1 clinical trial for the program this year.