China has proved to be a fertile ground for innovation as evidenced by some big deals in the antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) space, and the number of candidates entering clinical trials in China or being advanced in the U.S. by Chinese companies.
Shanghai Circode Biomed Co. Ltd. is set to begin clinical trials of HM-2002, a circular RNA (circRNA)-based drug for ischemic heart disease, having gained IND clearance in China Jan. 10 and the U.S. on May 30, Circode CEO Chenxiang Tang recently told BioWorld.
Immuno-oncology company Imugene Ltd.’s allogeneic, off-the-shelf CD19 CAR T, azercabtagene zapreleucel (azer-cel), has resulted in seven complete responses and three partial responses in a phase Ib trial in relapsed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma patients, according to an interim analysis. The responses to date show a 75% overall response rate.
As the July 23 PDUFA date nears for GSK plc’s Blenrep (belantamab mafodotin), the U.S. FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee will decide July 17 on whether available data justify the return to market of the antibody-drug conjugate as a therapy for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, and briefing documents made public ahead of the meeting laid out the issues.
China’s National Medical Products Administration approved Ascentage Pharma Group Corp. Ltd.’s Bcl-2 selective inhibitor lisaftoclax (APG-2575) for treating adults with chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma who previously received at least one systemic therapy including Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
Degradation is a therapeutic strategy that could offer possibilities to get at currently undruggable target proteins. In targeted degradation, compounds induce interactions between a target protein and a protein that can tag the target for degradation. In principle, there are several pathways that could be used for such tagging; the most attention has gone to ubiquitin ligases, in particular cereblon, a protein that is part of a ubiquitin ligase complex and the target of several approved drugs.
AGC Inc. has synthesized compounds acting as prostaglandin E2 receptor EP4 subtype (PTGER4; EP4) antagonists reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, with few successful treatment options. HCC development is associated with established risk factors, including metabolic dysregulation, repeated insults by hepatotoxins or infection by hepatotropic viruses.
Three months earlier than an expected update on a deal, Becton, Dickinson and Co. reported its biosciences and diagnostic solutions business will combine with Waters Corp. in a transaction valued at $17.5 billion. The resulting enterprise will operate under the Waters name and use its trading symbol (NYSE:WAT). Waters CEO Udit Batra will head the combined company.
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