Myricx Bio, a UK biotech company focused on the discovery and development of a completely novel class of antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) payloads based on N-Myristoyltransferase inhibition (NMTi), and WuXi Biologics (“WuXi Bio”) (2269.HK), a leading global Contract Research, Development and Manufacturing Organization (CRDMO), today announce that they have entered into a license agreement under which Myricx will have exclusive access to a proprietary antibody that was discovered based on WuXi Bio’s integrated technology platforms.
Under the terms of the agreement, Myricx will develop the antibody into a first-in-class ADC based on its NMTi payload platform, which has a highly differentiated profile over standard payload classes, including microtubule and topoisomerase inhibitors. Myricx intends to progress the ADC through preclinical and clinical development for difficult-to-treat solid tumours. WuXi Bio will receive an upfront payment and will be eligible for development and commercialisation milestone payments, as well as royalties on net sales.
NMT is an enzyme that adds a specific lipid modification to several protein targets key to cancer cell survival. Myricx recently highlighted the power of its NMTi payload platform across multiple tumour-associated antigens including B7-H3, TROP2, and HER2, with preclinical data presented at the 14th Annual World ADC conference in San Diego for which Myricx won the prize for Best Poster.
This is the second antibody license agreement that Myricx has entered into with a global company in the past few months as the Company builds out its pipeline of NMTi-ADCs.
Myricx CEO Dr Robin Carr said, “We are delighted to have reached this agreement with WuXi Bio, one of the top biologics CRDMOs globally. We believe that combining this leading antibody with our novel NMTi-based payload will create an ADC with significant clinical differentiation in solid tumours. Based on our positive preclinical data, we believe NMTi-ADCs offer a highly differentiated mechanism of action, superb efficacy, and good tolerability across different cancer targets.”
Dr Chris Chen, CEO of WuXi Biologics, commented, “This license agreement with Myricx is another testament of our proprietary integrated platform and the ‘R’ in our CRDMO business model. We are looking forward to enabling global clients to develop more first-in-class and best-in-class biologics drugs for the benefits of patients worldwide.”
Myricx is a spin-out from two of the UK’s leading biomedical research organisations: Imperial College London and the Francis Crick Institute; founded to develop drugs based on the unique insights into NMT biology made by its founders Professors Ed Tate and Roberto Solari, with seed financing from Sofinnova Partners and Brandon Capital.
