Kelun this week marking SKB518 as a “key product” in its R&D pipeline might raise some eyebrows. Very little is known about this antibody-drug conjugate, which only entered its first human trial just over a month ago, or its precise mechanism of action. However, close analysis of the study’s entry on the Chinese clinical trials registry reveals prior treatment with a PTK7-targeted drug as an exclusion criterion, so on this basis it’s safe to assume that SKB518 hits PTK7. Interestingly, the same study’s entry on the clinicaltrials.gov registry makes no mention of this exclusion criterion. Activity at PTK7 (protein tyrosine kinase 7) is a relatively uncommon mechanism, and OncologyPipeline reveals just one other clinical-stage ADC – PRO1107, originated by ProfoundBio and now owned by Genmab. In June Day One paid MabCare $55m for rights to the preclinical MTX-13/DAY301, while last year AbbVie discontinued the Pfizer-partnered cofetuzumab pelidotin. Kelun is perhaps best known for being Merck & Co’s partner for certain ADC assets, two of which the US firm returned last October. It’s not known whether SKB518 might have been one of these, but at present the asset is marked as wholly owned in Kelun’s pipeline. ADCs targeting PTK7ProjectTargetCompanyStatusPRO1107PTK7Genmab (ex ProfoundBio)Ph1/2 in solid tumours, $1.8bn takeover in Apr 2024SKB518PTK7KelunPh1 in solid tumoursDAY301/ MTX-13PTK7Day One/ MabCareCleared IND Apr 2024; deal Jun 2024 ($55m u/f)BCG034PTK7 x B7-H3Biocytogen/ IdeayaPreclinical; deal Jul 2024 (undisclosed u/f)BCG033PTK7 x TROP2BiocytogenPreclinical, AACR 2024 poster on triple-negative breast cancerBCG017PTK7 x EGFRBiocytogenPreclinical, AACR 2024 posterUnnamedPTK7Dong-A STPreclinicalCofetuzumab pelidotin (PF-06647020/ ABBV-647)PTK7Pfizer/ AbbVieDiscontinued, was in ph1 for PTK7-expressing NSCLCSource: OncologyPipeline.
Kelun this week marking SKB518 as a “key product” in its R&D pipeline might raise some eyebrows. Very little is known about this antibody-drug conjugate, which only entered its first human trial just over a month ago, or its precise mechanism of action. However, close analysis of the study’s entry on the Chinese clinical trials registry reveals prior treatment with a PTK7-targeted drug as an exclusion criterion, so on this basis it’s safe to assume that SKB518 hits PTK7. Interestingly, the same study’s entry on the clinicaltrials.gov registry makes no mention of this exclusion criterion. Activity at PTK7 (protein tyrosine kinase 7) is a relatively uncommon mechanism, and OncologyPipeline reveals just one other clinical-stage ADC – PRO1107, originated by ProfoundBio and now owned by Genmab. In June Day One paid MabCare $55m for rights to the preclinical MTX-13/DAY301, while last year AbbVie discontinued the Pfizer-partnered cofetuzumab pelidotin. Kelun is perhaps best known for being Merck & Co’s partner for certain ADC assets, two of which the US firm returned last October. It’s not known whether SKB518 might have been one of these, but at present the asset is marked as wholly owned in Kelun’s pipeline.
ADCs targeting PTK7
