Hong Kong Biotech Akesobio have announced they have successfully enrolled the first patient in their Phase Ia clinical trial studying AK146D1. The drug candidate is a bispecific antibody drug conjugate, Akeso’s first to enter the clinic, targeting Trop2 and Nectin4.
The news comes after the company announced that it had received approval to study the AK146D1 in the clinic from U.S. FDA, Australia's TGA, and China's NMPA.
Akeso promoted what they called their “IO+ADC 2.0” strategy, a new horizon of cancer care. The paradigm combines immune oncology drugs like [checkpoint inhibitors] with antibody drug conjugates, antibodies which deliver cytotoxic payloads to tumour cells.
AK146D1 is a new development in the IO+ADC space, being a bispecific ADC, it targets two antigens rather than one. The company already have two bispecific antibodies approved in China cadonilimab targeting PD-1 and CTLA-4 and ivonescimab targeting PD-1 and VEGF.
Akeso’s Founder, President, and CEO, Yu Xia, said: "Leveraging our extensive experience in the development of multispecific antibody drugs, the advancement of innovative bispecific ADCs like AK146D1 enables the company to unlock the global clinical potential of its innovative product portfolio, expanding opportunities for the ongoing evolution of cancer therapies."
This candidate will be the first ADC to target both Trop2 and Nectin4 at the same time. These targets are highly expressed in various cancers but less so in normal tissues, making them perfect targets for an ADC.
Akeso hopes that by targeting Trop2 and Nectin4, they can expand treatment options and address resistance to single-target ADCs, aiming for better efficacy.
