Enara Bio to Unveil First‑in‑Class DARKFOX‑Targeting Bispecific T Cell Engager ENA101 in Oral Presentation at AACR 2026, Showcasing Breakthrough Potential for Solid Tumor Immunotherapy
Oxford, UK – March 17, 2026. Enara Bio, a pioneer in Dark Antigen® discovery and bispecific T cell engager innovation, today announced new data to be presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2026, highlighting its lead clinical candidate, ENA101, a first-in-class bispecific T cell engager (TCE) targeting DARKFOX®, a novel cancer-specific Dark Antigen discovered with Enara’s EDAPT® platform.
ENA101 was engineered using Enara’s proprietary EnTiCE® T cell engager platform, enabling potent redirection of T cells to destroy cancer cells while maintaining exquisite specificity and robust manufacturability. In multiple preclinical studies, ENA101 demonstrated:
- Picomolar binding affinity to the DARKFOX-A3 peptide-HLA complex using an optimized TCR mimic.
- Robust cancer cell killing across a range of DARKFOX-A3⁺ solid tumor models with low pM EC50 values.
- Compelling in vivo anti-tumor activity, achieving deep tumor regression in xenograft models while maintaining a large preclinical safety window.
A New Class of Cancer Targets: DARKFOX and the Power of the Dark Proteome in Cancer
DARKFOX, encoded by a previously unknown alternative open reading frame (alt-ORF) of FOXM1, is one of the most advanced antigens emerging from Enara’s transformational EDAPT discovery engine.
- It is highly prevalent, tumor-specific, and homogeneously expressed, addressing longstanding limitations in solid‑tumor target specificity.
- Its HLA-A*03:01–presented peptide (DARKFOX-A3) has a robust cell surface copy number providing a clinically targetable and therapeutically attractive interface for T cell engager design.
Enara’s EDAPT platform applies genomic, proteomic, and machine learning-driven strategies to uncover and validate noncanonical antigens (Dark Antigens), creating a new horizon of targets for immunotherapy development.
Upcoming AACR Oral Presentation
Enara’s Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Joe Dukes, will deliver an oral presentation titled:
"ENA101: A first-in-class bispecific T cell engager targeting a DARKFOX peptide presented by solid tumors."
- Session: Advances in Therapeutic Antibodies
- Date/Time: Monday, April 20, 2026, 2:30–4:30 p.m. PST
- Abstract Presentation Number: 4052
The presentation will highlight the clinical opportunity associated with DARKFOX, the engineering of ENA101, and the comprehensive preclinical dataset supporting its advancement into clinical development.
Abstracts are available on the AACR website.
About Enara Bio
Enara Bio is shining a light on Dark Antigen® and T cell biology to develop cancer immunotherapies designed to improve treatment outcomes for broad populations of cancer patients with solid tumors. Our pioneering EDAPT® platform enables us to discover cancer-specific antigens, including HLA-presented and cell surface antigens, from previously uncharted genomic ‘dark matter’. The result is a growing library of Dark Antigens that can address the need for novel, cancer-specific targets in solid tumors. Through our proprietary EnTiCE® platform, Enara is developing novel bispecific T cell engagers against Dark Antigen targets that are highly prevalent and homogenously expressed across solid tumors. Based in Oxford, UK, Enara Bio is backed by a strong syndicate of life science investors including RA Capital, Pfizer Ventures, M Ventures, Samsara BioCapital, SV Health Investors, and the Francis Crick Institute.
For more information, visit: www.enarabio.com.
Dark Antigen®, DARKFOX®, EDAPT® and EnTiCE® are trademarks of Enara Bio.
Contacts
Kevin Pojasek, President & CEO
info@enarabio.com
Stacey Davis, CBO & CFO
stacey.davis@enarabio.com
Frazer Hall, Mark Swallow
MEDiSTRAVA
enarabio@medistrava.com
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