LegoChem Bio Licenses ADC Anticancer Drug Candidate to UK-based Exsuda

April 14: Following ADC platform technology transfer, in-house developed ADC anticancer drug candidate technology transfer
Total milestone of KRW 278.4 billion including upfront payment of KRW 6.1 billion
Secured profit-sharing terms for third-party technology transfer

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] LegoChem Biosciences announced on the 14th that it has signed a technology transfer agreement for an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) anticancer drug candidate with UK-based Exscientia Therapeutics.

LegoChem Biosciences jointly developed the ADC anticancer drug candidate with Swiss antibody development company Novimmune. Last month on the 14th, Exscientia signed a platform technology transfer agreement to apply LegoChem Biosciences' ADC linker and platform to three targets.

Under the contract, LegoChem Biosciences will receive an upfront payment of approximately 6.1 billion KRW and total royalties amounting to 278.4 billion KRW, including development stage milestones. Additionally, royalties based on sales revenue can be received. LegoChem Biosciences also secured a profit-sharing condition to receive additional royalty income according to an agreed ratio from all royalty revenues Exscientia obtains from third-party technology transfers.

The technology transfer targets a new drug candidate (LCB73) derived by combining LegoChem Biosciences' proprietary ADC linker and toxin with Novimmune's proprietary antibody targeting the blood cancer-specific antigen CD19. The candidate drug is being developed for various B cell blood cancers, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), which accounts for more than 90% of lymphomas. The candidate is reported to have secured superior efficacy and toxicity data compared to competing drugs through animal testing.

Kim Yong-joo, CEO of LegoChem Biosciences, stated, "This is our fourth ADC technology transfer," and added, "It is the first technology transfer of a product discovered through open innovation with an overseas antibody specialist company."

He continued, "It is important that the candidate applies our proprietary next-generation toxin," emphasizing, "If successful clinical results are achieved with the candidate, the value of LegoChem Biosciences' various ADC pipelines applying the same toxin will also greatly increase."

As LegoChem Biosciences continues to sign contracts in the ADC field, expectations for additional technology transfers of ADC pipelines and core technologies are growing. LegoChem Biosciences has achieved a total cumulative technology transfer scale of approximately 2 trillion KRW across seven cases.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.