▎WuXiEdited by Kant Content Team

Targeting "Junk DNA," Merck Reaches Over $300 Million Collaboration

Today, Epitopea announced a licensing and research collaboration agreement with MSD.The two companies will jointly identify tumor-specific antigens (TSA) known as Cryptigens in a certain undisclosed solid tumor.Cryptigen TSA refers to shared, non-mutated, and abnormally expressed antigens, which are derived from regions originally considered non-coding or "junk DNA."

Under the terms of the agreement, Epitopea will leverage its proprietary CryptoMap platform to identify and provide novel, immunogenic Cryptigen TSAs for pre-specified tumor types. Merck will have exclusive rights to develop and commercialize therapeutic products derived from this collaboration.Epitopea will receive an undisclosed upfront payment and is eligible for milestone payments, with the total potential milestone payments for each product reaching up to $300 million.

Over $1.2 Billion!CSPCInnovative Target ADC Collaboration Achieved

CSPC Announces Exclusive Licensing Agreement with Radiance Biopharma for the Development and Commercialization of SYS6005, a Recombinant Anti-ROR1 ADC, in the United States, EU, UK, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Australia, and Canada

SYS6005 is an ADC developed through CSPC's proprietary enzyme-catalyzed site-specific antibody-drug conjugation technology, which targets the effective mitotic inhibitor MMAE to cancer cells expressing ROR1., and the stability of its linker helps deliver high concentrations of MMAE to the tumor while reducing side effects by minimizing adverse systemic exposure.Compared with normal tissues,ROR1 is highly expressed in various hematologic malignancies and solid tumors, and its expression is closely related to disease progression and treatment response.The abnormal expression of ROR1 and related pro-proliferation signals observed in various malignant tumors make ROR1 an attractive therapeutic target in the development of anticancer drugs.SYS6005 is designed with a uniform drug-to-antibody ratio.Rate(DAR) distribution, proprietary linkers with higher stability, and a lower drug-to-antibody ratio to enhance blood stability and tumor-specific drug release, thereby achieving better safety and efficacy.

According to the terms of the agreement, CSPC has agreed to grant Radiance Biopharma the exclusive rights to develop and commercialize SYS6005 in the aforementioned countries and regions.CSPC will receive an upfront payment of $15 million and is entitled to potential development and regulatory milestone payments of up to $150 million, as well as potential sales milestone payments of up to $1.075 billion.