Hanmi Pharm and Beijing Hanmi Pharm Announce Next-Generation Anticancer Drug at US AACR

A representative from Hanmi Pharmaceutical is presenting research results on a poster at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) event.

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[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] Hanmi Pharmaceutical and Beijing Hanmi Pharmaceutical announced on the 13th that they revealed research results on two therapeutic candidates under development as innovative anticancer drugs at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

At this AACR, Hanmi Pharmaceutical presented research results on the epigenetic target anticancer drug 'HM97662' (EZH1/2), and Beijing Hanmi Pharmaceutical presented research results on the bispecific antibody drug 'BH3120' (PD-L1/4-1BB BsAb) in poster sessions, respectively.

HM97662 (EZH1/2), announced by Hanmi Pharmaceutical, is a new drug under development for the treatment of malignant hematologic cancers and solid tumors, showing potential not only to improve immune checkpoint inhibitor responsiveness but also to overcome resistance to existing therapies.

Through research, Hanmi Pharmaceutical confirmed the strong anticancer effect based on dual inhibition of EZH1/2 by HM97662, and at this AACR introduced a new possibility of HM97662 as an immune modulator in KRAS/LKB1 dual-mutant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

According to Hanmi Pharmaceutical's announcement, HM97662 increases the expression of the interferon gene stimulator (STING), a factor that enhances immune responses in the tumor microenvironment (TME), in addition to inhibiting EZH1/2. This promotes the secretion of immune cell-activating cytokines and chemokines. Through this mechanism, HM97662 was shown to enhance the responsiveness to immune checkpoint inhibitors in KRAS/LKB1 dual-mutant NSCLC. Hanmi Pharmaceutical plans to start a Phase 1 clinical trial, including confirmation of these efficacies, within the first half of this year.

Additionally, Beijing Hanmi Pharmaceutical announced preclinical research results showing that the immuno-oncology drug 'BH3120', developed using the bispecific antibody platform 'Pentambody', demonstrated not only strong antitumor effects but also excellent safety in experiments conducted on primates.

'Pentambody' is a next-generation bispecific antibody technology that allows a single antibody to simultaneously bind to two different targets. It offers advantages such as excellent stability, freedom from immunogenicity issues, and high production efficiency.

BH3120 targets the immune cell activation receptor 4-1BB. 4-1BB is a co-stimulatory molecule expressed on T cells or NK cells, showing powerful and sustained anticancer effects. Furthermore, during repeated dosing cycles, no hepatotoxicity or hematologic changes such as neutrophil or platelet count alterations?expected side effects within the class?were observed, demonstrating the potential for a very safe and effective new immuno-oncology drug.

Based on these preclinical research results, Beijing Hanmi Pharmaceutical plans to initiate clinical trials from the second half of this year to confirm safety and efficacy as a treatment for various solid tumors.

Se-Chang Kwon, CEO of Hanmi Pharmaceutical, stated, “We will continue to introduce excellent new drugs developed through the cooperative relationship between our research centers in Korea and China,” adding, “We will concentrate all R&D capabilities of the group to contribute to improving the quality of life for patients suffering from diseases.”

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