Anbogen Therapeutics announced on the 27th that it has entered into a strategic drug supply collaboration with BeiGene, a global innovator in cancer treatments. The partnership aims to evaluate a combination therapy using Anbogen’s HDAC inhibitor ABT-301 together with BeiGene’s anti-PD-1 antibody, tislelizumab. According to the agreement, BeiGene will provide tislelizumab to Anbogen, which will conduct the upcoming Phase II clinical trial for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), with patient recruitment expected to begin in the first quarter of next year.
Founded in April 2019, Anbogen Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on cancer treatments. With a registered capital of NT$935 million, it is currently a publicly traded company and aims to list on the emerging stock market by the end of this year.
Anbogen Therapeutics' General Manager, Joe Hsueh, stated that the collaboration with BeiGene will assess the combined use of Anbogen’s HDAC inhibitor ABT-301 and BeiGene’s anti-PD-1 antibody tislelizumab in a global Phase II clinical trial, targeting patients with proficient mismatch repair (pMMR) or microsatellite stable (MSS) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).
Under the agreement, BeiGene will supply tislelizumab for the clinical trials, while Anbogen retains the rights to develop ABT-301 for other indications.
Hsueh noted that over 1.9 million new cases of colorectal cancer were diagnosed globally in 2020. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have become the main therapy for treating mCRC patients with deficient mismatch repair (dMMR) or high microsatellite instability (MSI-H). However, these innovative therapies benefit only a small fraction of patients, as less than 5% of advanced mCRC cases exhibit dMMR/MSI-H. For the remaining 95% of patients with pMMR/MSS tumors, who do not respond to ICIs, there is a significant unmet medical need.
ABT-301 is a novel HDAC inhibitor that demonstrated good safety and pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) profiles in patients with solid tumors during a previous Phase I clinical study. Preclinical studies have shown that ABT-301 enhances the efficacy of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapies by increasing CD8+ cytotoxic T cells, reducing tumor and circulating monocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells (M-MDSCs), and inhibiting tumor angiogenesis. This enhanced immune response may improve the effectiveness of ICIs in colorectal cancer patients.
Hsueh added that the upcoming Phase II trial will explore the efficacy of combining ABT-301 and tislelizumab, with or without bevacizumab, in treating pMMR/MSS mCRC patients.
Anbogen Therapeutics CEO, Hsu Tsu-An, expressed excitement about the partnership with BeiGene, stating, “We are thrilled to collaborate with BeiGene in exploring this groundbreaking combination therapy. ABT-301 has demonstrated tremendous potential in preclinical studies, and we believe that its combination with tislelizumab could offer a novel treatment option for colorectal cancer patients, overcoming the current therapeutic limitations.”
The multi-center Phase II clinical trial will evaluate the safety, tolerability, and preliminary efficacy of the combination therapy in advanced MSS CRC patients. Patient recruitment is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2025.
Resource (mandarin): 安邦生技與BeiGene藥物合作 評估大腸直腸癌合併療法
