AbstractTumor associated FOXP3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) suppress antitumor immunity, thereby hindering protective immunosurveillance of tumors and hampering effective antitumor immune responses in tumor-bearing hosts. Eliminating the suppressive effects of tumor associated Tregs could, therefore, enhance antitumor activity of existing immunotherapies. CCR8 is a seven transmembrane G-coupled protein whose expression is highly upregulated on tumor associated Tregs in several types of tumors, but not on peripheral Tregs. The specific expression on tumor associated Tregs makes CCR8 an ideal target for treating cancers. The chemokine CCL1 interacts with the N terminus and second extracellular domain of CCR8. CCL1 produced by tumor associated macrophages can induce Tregs migration to the tumors. PSB114, a humanized anti-hCCR8 IgG1 antibody, was developed to block CCL1 mediated Tregs chemotaxis and deplete tumor associated CCR8-expressing Tregs. PSB114 was affinity matured by yeast display and glyco-modified to enhance its ADCC activity. PSB114 has high binding affinity for human CCR8 without significant binding to other membrane proteins, resulting in a favorable PK in hFcRn transgenic mice (T1/2 > 13 days). PSB114 is highly specific for the activated Tregs with low picomolar EC50 of depletion activity. When tested in bioassays, PSB114 enhances T cell activation and TNFα production from activated PBMCs. In a humanized mouse model, PSB114 preferentially depletes tumor infiltrating Tregs and increases NK and CD8 T cell infiltration within the tumor. Moreover, PBS114 significantly inhibited MC38 tumor growth in hCCR8 knock-in mice. These results demonstrate the potential of PSB114 for treating cancers in human.Citation Format: Jamil A. Haque, Cristina Domeier, Paul A. Algate, Zhi Liu, Wei Yan, YuFeng Peng. An ADCC enhanced anti-CCR8 antibody, which preferentially depletes tumor regulatory T cells and inhibits tumor growth [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 2068.