Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) Co., Ltd., a global biotechnology company specializing in novel antibody therapeutics, has entered into a significant agreement with Myricx Bio, a British biotechnology company focused on creating a new class of cytotoxic payloads specifically designed for antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs).

Under the terms of the agreement, Myricx will provide its proprietary linker and payload components, while Biocytogen will employ its RenMice®-derived fully human antibodies to manufacture ADCs through conjugation. Biocytogen will initially perform feasibility testing for these ADCs as contract research organization (CRO) services. Should Myricx choose to exercise its option, it will assume responsibility for further development and commercialization.

As part of this collaboration, Biocytogen has selected antibodies with a focus on their high specificity, inter-species reactivity, strong affinity, and development capabilities, particularly their potent internalization activity, making them ideal candidates for ADC applications.

The NMT (N-Myristoyltransferase) enzyme plays a crucial role in providing lipid modification to several protein targets essential for the survival of cancer cells. Myricx is advancing a pipeline of ADCs built on its NMT inhibitor chemistry (NMTi) platform, demonstrating excellent preclinical efficacy and safety across multiple tumor-associated antigens and cancer cell types.

Dr. Yuelei Shen, President and CEO of Biocytogen, expressed gratitude for Myricx's recognition of Biocytogen's antibody assets, preclinical discovery expertise, and CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls) capabilities. He believes that the combined strengths of both companies will yield ADC drugs with significant potential as first-in-class and best-in-class candidates.

Dr. Robin Carr, Chairman and CEO of Myricx, expressed his satisfaction with the partnership with Biocytogen, highlighting their revolutionary antibody development technology. He believes that combining their proprietary antibody with Myricx's novel selective NMTi-based cytotoxic payloads will pave the way for best-in-class ADCs addressing critical clinical needs in oncology. NMT inhibitors represent an innovative class of ADC payloads that can serve as targeted therapies in cancer, offering the potential for selective elimination of cancer cells due to their unique mechanism of action.

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