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Welcome to today’s Biotech Spotlight, a series highlighting companies creating groundbreaking technologies and products. Today we’re featuring Mythic Therapeutics, a company focused on developing more precise ADCs.
focus: George Eliades, CEO and President, Mysic Therapeutics
Mythic Therapeutics’ Vision: The antibody-drug conjugate market has become one of the most dynamic areas in oncology, with 13 FDA-approved therapies and more than 100 in clinical trials, according to a review published in the journal Neurology in March. Molecular Cancer.
George Eliades, CEO and President, Mysic Therapeutics
Used with permission from Mythic Therapeutics
ADCs are a powerful type of precision cancer therapy that combine a monoclonal antibody with an antitumor drug “payload” such as a chemotherapy using a linker protein to deliver the cancer-killing drug to target cells. The antibody binds to the cell and the linker degrades, releasing the payload.
Traditionally, ADC development has focused primarily on anti-tumor payloads, and this is a logical approach given the function of the payload, Eliades says.
“The linker payload is very important because ultimately it’s the cytotoxic payload that attacks the cancer cells,” he said.
However, the payload may also reach healthy cells, reducing efficacy and increasing side effects. For example, HER2-targeting ADCs for breast cancer: Cardiac toxicity.
Massachusetts-based Mysic Therapeutics is taking a different approach, developing ADCs that bind to their targets more effectively and attack cancer cells more precisely, resulting in fewer side effects.
“We expect this will improve the efficacy and overall cancer care,” Eliades said, “and improve patients’ quality of life.”
How the work: for Mysick, it’s the antibodies that make the difference.
“The antibodies that our team developed are designed to bind to cancer cells and bind very tightly at a specific pH,” Eliades said. “Inside the endolysosomes of cancer cells, the molecules unbind very quickly, so that 3 to 5 times Internalizing other ADCs.”
Eliades said Mysic’s technology allows more of the therapeutic to penetrate the tumor, rather than depositing the payload close to the tumor.
Why is this important: ADCs “have been around for 20 to 30 years, but they have suffered from a serious problem: they have a very narrow therapeutic index,” Eliades says.
Traditionally, only patients with the highest expression levels of a cancer target can benefit from an ADC because they have many copies of the target that the ADC binds to, Eliades said. More precise binding This means that patients who are not high expressers can also benefit from ADCs, expanding the patient population.
“Our vision is to bring the transformative benefits of ADCs to more patients,” said Eliades. “Our platform, which we call FateControl, has the opportunity to achieve incredible results.”
Mythic’s leadership team also has ADC capabilities. Jill Gallant, the company’s chief development officer, said: Led first Sankyo A team involved in clinical development, global regulatory submissions and global approvals The hit ADC AngelHelen Chalk, vice president of clinical operations, previously led four ADC programs at Mersana Therapeutics, and Tom Chittenden, senior vice president and head of biology, worked on the development of the ADC Elahere at Immunogen.
In the pipeline: Mysic’s clinical candidate, MYTX-011, Phase 1 Study For patients with locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer.
recently Published researchA single dose of MYTX-011 demonstrated at least three-fold greater efficacy than the benchmark ADC in mouse xenograft models, improved pharmacokinetics, and a toxicity profile similar to other ADCs with the same cytotoxin.
Mr. Eliades said his goal since taking over as CEO in April has been to expand the company’s business into additional programs. He added that “it’s entirely possible that Mysic will have three or four approved therapies by 2030.”
ADC Latest Updates: Pfizer and Genmab’s Tivdak Fully FDA approved The company received accelerated approval for recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer in 2021 and began selling it in April. Ellareceived Following accelerated approval in November 2022, the drug is expected to receive full FDA approval in March for the treatment of certain ovarian, fallopian tube and primary peritoneal cancers.
in In addition, AstraZeneca has six ADCs in clinical development and more in preclinical development. just Announced Plans AZ announced it will build a $1.5 billion ADC manufacturing facility in Singapore, a major investment in complex, multi-component manufacturing processes. AZ said the facility will be its first end-to-end production site, fully integrated with all steps at commercial scale, and is expected to be operational by 2029.
