Gilead Expands Oncology Pipeline with $725 Million Deal to Acquire Four Targeted Therapies Including TIGIT Antibodies

Today, Gilead Sciences and Arcus Biosciences jointly announced that Gilead has exercised its option to acquire multiple R&D programs from Arcus’s clinical-stage pipeline. These include two monoclonal antibodies targeting TIGIT — domvanalimab and AB308 — as well as the small molecule therapies etrumadenant and quemliclustat. The two parties have also expanded their collaboration with new R&D projects.

Gilead and Arcus entered into a 10-year partnership in May last year to jointly develop investigational drugs from Arcus's pipeline. Today, Gilead has obtained clinical-stage R&D programs including the TIGIT-targeted monoclonal antibodies domvanalimab and AB308. TIGIT stands for T cell immunoreceptor with Ig and ITIM domains, an emerging oncology target that has garnered attention from several biopharmaceutical companies in recent years. It is expressed on the surface of various types of T cells and inhibits T-cell activation.

▲Mechanism of TIGIT in regulating T-cell immune response (Image source: Reference [1])

Domvanalimab (AB154) is an anti-TIGIT antibody with the Fc function removed, used for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). It can block TIGIT activity at nanomolar levels, thereby inhibiting immune suppression and enhancing immune activity. It is currently in Phase 2 and Phase 3 clinical trials. AB308 is an anti-TIGIT antibody that retains the Fc function and is in Phase 1 clinical trials.

▲Introduction to Domvanalimab and AB308 (Image Source: Arcus Biosciences' official website)

Etrumadenant is a dual adenosine A2a/A2b receptor antagonist used for the treatment of NSCLC, colon cancer, and prostate cancer, currently in Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials. Adenosine plays an immunosuppressive role in the tumor microenvironment, and by blocking the adenosine-mediated signaling pathway, the activity of various immune cells may be enhanced.

Image Source: Arcus Biosciences Official Website

Quemliclustat is a small-molecule CD73 inhibitor for the treatment of metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and is currently in Phase 1 clinical trials. In the Phase 1 clinical trial, it was used in combination with chemotherapy and anti-PD-1 antibodies as a first-line treatment for pancreatic cancer, achieving an objective response rate of 41%.

By acquiring these clinical development programs, Gilead and Arcus are able to accelerate the clinical development of drugs and promote the exploration of combination therapies. For instance, Gilead will explore the use of its "first-in-class" antibody-drug conjugate Trodelvy (sacituzumab govitecan-hziy) in combination with these potential therapies as part of chemotherapy-free treatment regimens.

According to the agreement between both parties, Arcus will receive a total payment of $725 million. Both parties will jointly develop and share the R&D costs associated with these projects. If the selected drug molecules receive regulatory approval, Gilead and Arcus will jointly be responsible for the commercialization of the drugs.

References:

[1] Gilead Exercises Options to Three Arcus Biosciences Clinical-Stage Programs and Adds Research Collaboration. Retrieved November 18, 2021, from https://www.gilead.com/news-and-press/press-room/press-releases/2021/11/gilead-exercises-options-to-three-arcus-biosciences-clinical-stage-programs-and-adds-research-collaboration

[2] ASCO 20 Roche Analyst Event. Retrieved June 3, 2020, from https://www.roche.com/dam/jcr:f5e7c03b-8c92-4c3d-9279-c966910df429/en/irp20200529.pdf

(Original text has been abridged)

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