In pursuit of more targeted therapies and clinically
effective drugs, pharmaceutical companies are increasing their research and
development activities in biologics. Although a majority of this work is
focused on monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and recombinant proteins, progress is
being made in specialized drugs. Antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) are a new
class of drugs that is gaining attention from both large and small
pharmaceutical companies as they offer promise in cancer therapeutics. They consist
of an mAb - an antibody that is specific to the target associated antigen, a
cytotoxic drug - designed to kill target cancer cells, and a linker - that
attaches the cytotoxic agent to the antibody. Thus, antibody drug conjugates
combine the targeting ability of monoclonal antibody and the target specific
cell killing ability of cytotoxic drugs.
The market for antibody drug conjugates is witnessing a fast growth, which is supported by the advancement in medical technology, the rise in the occurrence of cancer cases worldwide, growing ageing population, and the growing obese population. Furthermore, the increased research activities on antibody therapies, advanced drug discoveries and oncology diseases as well as the growing collaboration between research institutes are propelling the growth of the industry. Nonetheless, the high cost of the procedures and the lack of fund pose a threat to the growth of the ADC market. According to a report published by Allied Market Research, the antibody drug conjugates market is expected to reach $3,198 million by 2023, registering a CAGR of 12.9% from 2017 to 2023.
Companies within the space are coming up with superior
technologies to develop more effective and efficient antibody drug conjugates.
For instance, ADC Therapeutics, a developer of proprietary PBD-based antibody
drug conjugates, recently announced that it would deliver its presentations
regarding strong preclinical data for its two new investigational programs
ADCT-601 targeting AXL and ADCT-701 targeting DLK-1 at the American Association
for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting. Daiichi Sankyo, a global pharmaceutical
company announced that its HER2-targeting antibody drug conjugate (ADC)
received SAKIGAKE Designation for the treatment of gastric cancer by the Japan
Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW). Synaffix, a Netherlands-based
biotech company announced the launch of a new platform of highly potent
cytotoxic ADC payloads that integrates into its existing ADC platform.
ADC Therapeutics to
Present Two Novel ADCs
In April 2018, ADC Therapeutics announced its presentation
regarding strong preclinical data for its two new investigational programs
ADCT-601 targeting AXL and ADCT-701 targeting DLK-1 at the American Association
for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting which takes place from April 14-18,
2018 in Chicago, USA. Dr. Jay Feingold, Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice
President of Clinical Development at ADCT said, “Our two new investigational
programs show compelling efficacy and safety in preclinical studies. These
results provide an important step to advance ADCT-601 and ADCT-701 into the
clinic and enlarge our pipeline of PBD-based ADCs in multiple ongoing clinical
trials for the treatment of both solid and hematological cancers.” Highlights
of the data to be presented are available on the AACR conference website at
www.aacr.org
Daiichi Sankyo's
HER2-Targeting Antibody Drug Conjugate Receives SAKIGAKE Designation for
Gastric Cancer
In March 2018, Daiichi Sankyo announced that DS-8201, an
HER2-targeting antibody drug conjugate (ADC) received SAKIGAKE Designation for
the treatment of HER2-positive advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction
cancer by the Japan Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare (MHLW). The company
said that it intends to work closely with the Japan MHLW under the terms of the
SAKIGAKE program to speed up the development of DS-8201 since Japan has one of
the highest cases of gastric cancer worldwide. The SAKIGAKE Designation system
fosters R&D in Japan, propelling early practical application for novel
pharmaceutical products, medical devices, and regenerative medicines. As a
designated medicine under the system, DS-8201 has prioritized consultation, a
dedicated review system to support the development and review process, and a
reduced review time.
Synaffix Launches
toxSYN, a New Platform of ADC Payloads
Synaffix BV, a biotechnology company announced thgrowinge
launch of a new platform of cytotoxic ADC payloads that integrates into its
current ADC platform. With the launch, the company becomes a provider of
technologies needed to quickly translate antibodies into proprietary ADC
products. The new toxSYN platform comprises four highly potent payloads
offering multiple mechanisms of action and a way for commercialization when
integrated with the components of Synaffix’s GlycoConnect and HydraSpace
technologies. Validated clinically with well-known efficacy and safety
profiles, the payloads were selected to address the two types of biologies that
exist across ADC targets such as rapidly-dividing cancer cells and quiescent
cells. “We expect this important expansion of our ADC technology to further
advance our internal research and facilitate collaborations with a much broader
set of companies,” said Peter van de Sande, CEO of Synaffix. “By providing
these four distinct payloads through our new toxSYN platform, we can now enable
any company with an existing antibody to rapidly establish a highly-competitive
clinical-stage ADC program for its own development pipeline.”
