On August 20th, Kelun Pharmaceutical released an announcement on the progress of its subsidiary Kelun Botai's cooperation project with MSD. The announcement stated that Kelun Botai had received written notification from MSD that MSD would exercise exclusive selection rights for the innovative dual antibody ADC project SKB571 and pay Kelun Botai $37.5 million. Kelun Botai will also pay further milestone payments to Kelun Botai once specific development and sales milestones are achieved. Kelun Botai will retain the right to develop, use, manufacture, and commercialize SKB571 across regions in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau.
SKB571 is an innovative dual antibody ADC currently in preclinical development, and its specific target is not yet clear; Mainly targeting various solid tumors such as lung cancer and digestive tract tumors. This drug enhances its targeting of tumors through scientific target combination selection and differentiated dual antibody molecular design, which is beneficial for overcoming tumor heterogeneity and improving therapeutic efficacy. Preclinical studies have shown that it has demonstrated good anti-tumor efficacy and safety in various human tumor xenograft (PDX) models and crab eating macaques. This product will submit an IND application in the near future.
