Abnormal fusion of the FGFR2 gene, encoding the fibroblast growth factor receptor 2, occurs in several types of cancer, including in up to 15% of cases of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.
Multiple myeloma (MM) is a complex disease with poor prognosis and its clinical management still remains a challenge in the field. Since both BCMA and GPRC5D are overexpressed in MM cells, a therapeutic approach targeting both would be of interest. Qilu Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. is hence developing a dual BCMA- and GPRC5D-targeting antibody – QLS-4131 – for the treatment of MM.
Granite Bio AG has emerged from stealth with $100 million in series A and B funding and a focus on developing first-in-class antibodies that target the root causes of a variety of inflammatory, autoimmune and fibrotic conditions.
Avidicure BV has launched with a $50 million seed financing round and a focus on developing dual agonistic, multifunctional and avidity engineered antibodies, or AVC-Boosters, to deliver targeted and potent cancer monotherapy.
G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are involved in many diseases, yet raising therapeutic antibodies against them is notoriously difficult because the transmembrane receptors contain only short extracellular regions that can function as antigens. As a result, only two therapeutic antibodies against GPCRs have ever been licensed for the clinic.
Briacell Therapeutics Corp.’s subsidiary, Briapro Therapeutics Corp., is developing novel, high affinity antibodies to B7-H3 using molecular modeling techniques. As both an immune checkpoint molecule that regulates T-cell activity and a cell surface molecule expressed on many types of cancer cells, B7-H3 is a promising drug target.
Researchers from Sanofi SA reported the preclinical characterization of SAR-446159 (ABL-301), a bispecific antibody construct comprising an antibody targeting α-synuclein fused to an engineered antibody fragment that targets IGF-1R and functions as a blood-brain barrier (BBB) shuttle, known as the Grabody-B platform.
Transferrin receptor (TfR)-mediated transcytosis is a receptor-mediated mechanism for drug delivery to the brain or other tissues, where, after the antibody binds to transferrin, the therapeutic agent is internalized and released into the brain.
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease of the central nervous system characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra and the abnormal aggregation of α-synuclein. UCB Pharma Inc. has presented new preclinical data on their anti-α-synuclein antibody UCB-7853 for the potential treatment of PD.