Biotecnol Inc. and PolyTherics Ltd. have entered into a collaboration for the development of multi-specific Tribody drug conjugates (TDCs). The companies will combine Biotecnol’s Tribody technology with PolyTherics’ proprietary site-specific linker technologies to attach cytotoxic payloads to various Tribodies for targeted cancer therapy.
Tribody molecules are multi-specific antibody products that, from a single molecule, enable the targeting of two or three tumor antigens in the same disease or two or three epitopes on the same tumor target. In vitro and in vivo studies conducted by Biotecnol have demonstrated Tribodies to have strong targeting abilities and high tumor-to-blood ratios, which make them highly suitable for delivering toxic payloads in certain key disease settings. Biotecnol has a large repertoire of multivalent antibodies, and well-established capabilities in antibody development and antibody engineering, which will be directed towards this collaboration.
PolyTherics’ novel ThioBridge linker technology is a superior conjugation technology for creating more stable, less heterogeneous antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) through site-specific linkage and rebridging of disulphide bonds. It has been developed to support the conjugation of a range of therapeutic payloads to antibodies, antibody fragments or scaffolds via specific sites without impacting functional domains. PolyTherics’ ThioBridge technology also enables the development of conjugates with improved solubility and a reduced risk of aggregation.
The companies will test the potency of the ThioBridge Tribody-drug conjugates in preclinical cancer models. Biotecnol and PolyTherics will jointly seek partners to develop the most promising product candidates that arise from the collaboration.
Pedro de Noronha Pissarra, CEO of Biotecnol, said: “Over the last year we have made some key and important progress on the development of our Tribody platform, mainly at the level of its physicochemical properties, stability, reproducibility and scalability. When we searched for a partner in the ground-breaking field of cytotoxic payload delivery, we found that the properties of PolyTherics’ technology and the respective company’s expertise were key factors for achieving a successful collaboration in this growing field. Together, both companies are able to put together a wealth of expertise and create a highly competitive value-proposition, in order to succeed in such a demanding and competitive market.”
John Burt, CEO of PolyTherics, added: “A key challenge facing developers of protein-drug conjugates is that the chemistry linking the targeting molecule to the toxic payload can lead to unstable, heterogeneous products. PolyTherics’ technology is site-specific, predictable and results in stable and homogeneous conjugates. Combining these attributes with the versatility of Biotecnol’s Tribody platform has the potential to create the next-generation of targeted cancer therapies and we look forward to working together with Biotecnol on this opportunity.”
Date: October 23, 2012
Source: Biotecnol Inc.
Filed Under: Drug Discovery
