3SB
io Inc. has announced the establishment of an exclusive license agreement with PharmAbcine Inc. for the development, marketing and manufacturing of Tanibirumab, an anti-VEGFR2/KDR antibody for cancer treatment, to be marketed in the Asiatic Region (Mainland China,Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau) and Thailand, Brazil and Russia. The deal includes undisclosed details on upfront and royalties payments.
3SBio Inc is a leading biotechnology company based in China focused on the research, development, production and marketing of biopharmaceutical products such as fully human monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and bi-specific antibodies to treat cancer and inflammatory diseases (1 million patients each year are diagnosed with cancer in China).
Angiogenesis, the physiological process of new blood vessels formation from pre-existing ones, is connected with disease progression and bad prognosis in many types of cancer (such colon, lung, breast and gastric cancers). Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and kinase domain receptor (KDR), also know as vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR-2), are key regulators of tumor angiogenesis and are over expressed in malignant tumors (such as liver, gastric, NSCLC, brain, ovarian, breast and colorectal cancers).
Investigators developed Tanibirumab, an antiVEGFR2/KDR fully human monoclonal antibody, to treat solid tumors. This antibody binds KDR, blocking the interaction of VEGFR ligands (VEGF-A, VEGF-C, VEGF-D) and, as a consequence, inhibiting angiogenesis, proliferation, and migration of human endothelial cells.
Tanibirumab demonstrated to be effective as an anti-angiogenic factor against several types of cancer in different pre-clinical animal models of breast, lung, colon and glioblastoma tumors. A Phase 1 trial, concluded in November 2013, demonstrated that Tanibirumab had positive safety and efficacy results. A glioblastoma Phase 2 clinical study is currently being planned.
Jing Lou, President and CEO of 3SBio, said in a press release, “We are pleased to collaborate with PharmAbcine and look forward to moving Tanibirumab into clinical trials in China (…) 3SBio continues to seek opportunities to expand our biologics pipeline, especially novel mAb candidates for refractory or metastatic cancers and other unmet medical needs, particularly in 3SBio’s core therapeutic areas of oncology and nephrology.”
PharmAbcine’s president and CEO, Jin-San Yoo, added, “Tanibirumab is a drug candidate with great potential to treat malignant tumors (…) 3SBio is a well-established industry leader with long-term vision in the innovative biological field in China, which makes them an ideal partner for strategic collaborations. We are looking forward to working with 3SBio to maximize this opportunity and benefit tens of thousands of Chinese patients suffering for cancers and other severe diseases.”
