ADC Therapeutics has been busy lately: In addition to its deal last week with Genmab to develop a new ADC product involving ADC’s pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD)-based warhead and linker technology, the company has now just inked a licensing deal with VivaMab, a therapeutic development division of BioAtla, for a novel antibody against an undisclosed hematological cancer target.
The VivaMab antibody ADC has just picked up (VM101) was produced using BioAtla’s Express Humanization™, Comprehensive Positional Evolution™, Combinatorial Protein Synthesis™ affinity, and functional maturation technology platforms. VM101 has been combined with a third-generation cytotoxic PBD-based warhead and proprietary linker technology to form a new ADC, which reportedly has already shown to have good in vivo efficacy in established models for normally intractable hematological cancer indications.
ADC Therapeutics says it plans to initiate pre-IND development of this ADC in parallel with its advanced ADC programs. VivaMab will provide development support and will receive a share undisclosed potential milestones and royalties on the compound.
“By creating an antibody that is optimized for expression, target binding, and potency, BioAtla and ADCT are paving the way to make powerful next-generation cancer drugs with the potential to save lives,” BioAtla’s Jay M. Short, Ph.D., CEO and chairman, said in a statement.