Peptone Signs Joint Research Agreement with Swiss Debiopharm for ADC Development

Verifying the Potential for Next-Generation Dual Payload ADC Development

Peptone, a peptide-based innovative drug development company, announced on June 24 that it has signed a joint research agreement with Swiss global biopharmaceutical company Debiopharm to develop next-generation antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) using its proprietary Mucin1 (MUC1)-targeting antibody, PAb001.

This joint research aims to combine Peptone's PAb001 antibody with Debiopharm's proprietary ADC platform technology, MultiLINK™, to discover and evaluate various forms of PAb001-based ADC candidate substances.

PAb001 is an antibody that targets MUC1, which is expressed in various solid tumors. It is recognized as an asset with excellent tumor targeting ability and is considered suitable for developing various anticancer modalities, including ADCs.

In this joint research project, Debiopharm will use its MultiLINK platform technology to design and produce multiple PAb001-ADC candidate substances that incorporate cytotoxic payloads, linkers to connect the antibody and the drug, and conjugation technologies.

Peptone plans to conduct in vitro efficacy evaluations, in vivo anticancer efficacy assessments, and pharmacokinetic (PK) studies on the provided ADC candidates, comparing and analyzing the characteristics of each candidate and conducting research to select the optimal development candidate.

The two companies aim not only to develop a single ADC candidate through this research, but also to expand the application range and development potential of the PAb001 antibody by evaluating various combinations of linkers, payloads, and conjugation methods, thereby securing a variety of subsequent development options in the future.

Debiopharm, established in 1979, is a Swiss global biopharmaceutical company with experience developing oncology and specialty drugs such as Oxaliplatin and Triptorelin. In recent years, the company has been expanding its pipeline of first-in-class and best-in-class candidate substances and increasing investment in the ADC sector.

In addition, Debiopharm owns its proprietary ADC platform, MultiLINK technology, which not only allows for various linker and payload combinations but also includes Dual Payload ADC technology that enables two different payloads to be simultaneously applied to a single antibody. The platform is especially noted for its flexibility in ADC design, based on high compatibility with various payloads and conjugation methods.

Hoil Choi, CEO of Peptone, stated, "PAb001 is an antibody asset that enables diverse ADC designs based on its superior tumor targeting. This joint research is expected to further enhance the scalability and commercialization potential of PAb001 by applying various linker, payload, and conjugation technologies beyond the development of a single ADC candidate."

He added, "Debiopharm's MultiLINK platform technology is regarded as a next-generation technology that offers a variety of ADC design options. Through this research, we aim to secure multiple PAb001-based ADC candidates and lay the foundation for expanding into various anticancer pipelines in the future."

Meanwhile, Frederic Levy, Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) at Debiopharm, commented, "We are excited to verify the various ADC design possibilities by combining the excellent characteristics of PAb001 with Debiopharm's MultiLINK platform technology."

ADC is a next-generation anticancer therapy technology that combines the tumor selectivity of antibodies with cytotoxic drugs and is considered one of the fastest-growing sectors in the global pharmaceutical and biotech industry. Recently, the development of next-generation ADC technologies utilizing multiple payloads, moving beyond conventional single-payload approaches, has been actively progressing.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.