ABL Bio (CEO Sang Hoon Lee), a company specializing in bispecific antibodies, today announced that it has entered into a clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with MSD (a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA), to evaluate ABL103 in combination with MSD's anti-PD-1 therapy, KEYTRUDA^® (pembrolizumab) in patients with advanced or metastatic solid tumors.

Under the terms of the agreement, ABL Bio will conduct a phase 1b/2 clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of ABL103 in combination with KEYTRUDA. In this combination study, MSD will supply KEYTRUDA.

ABL103 is bispecific antibody that simultaneously targets B7-H4 and 4-1BB. ABL103 is one of the pipeline programs in which ABL Bio's 4-1BB based bispecific antibody platform 'Grabody-T' has been applied. Grabody-T is designed to activate T cells only in the tumor microenvironment, reducing the liver toxicity of conventional 4-1BB monoclonal antibody and enhancing the antitumor activity.

ABL103 also has mechanism to activate the 4-1BB signaling pathways in the tumor microenvironments where the B7-H4 antigens exist, allowing T cells to selectively attack tumor cells while sparing normal cells. Currently, the dose escalation part of the phase 1 clinical trial for ABL103 is ongoing in South Korea.

Sang Hoon Lee, CEO of ABL Bio said "we are pleased to enter into this clinical collaboration agreement with MSD. With this agreement, we are ready to move on to the next stage of ABL103 clinical development. We hope that the combination of ABL103 and KEYTRUDA contributes to a better life for patients with advanced or metastatic solid tumors. To date, the phase 1 study for ABL103 monotherapy is progressing smoothly, and we will do our best in clinical development to achieve meaningful results from ABL103."

Meanwhile, ABL Bio is developing various clinical and non-clinical assets based on its bispecific antibody platform 'Grabody'. More than 15 clinical projects for more than 7 assets, including ABL001, ABL111, ABL503, ABL105, ABL202, ABL301, and ABL103, are underway for different indications in various countries, including the United States, China, Australia, and Korea. In the case of ABL001, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently granted Fast Track designation to support the rapid development of this new drug candidate. Meanwhile, ABL Bio is preparing to initiate clinical trials for ABL104. In addition, ABL Bio is continuously researching and developing several other product candidates, including bispecific antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs).

KEYTRUDA^® is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA.