Takeda Pharmaceuticals and LegoChem Biosciences (LCB) signed a research licensing agreement that will give Takeda access to the South Korean firm’s proprietary antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) technology ConjuAll™ for the evaluation of next-generation ADC candidates. The deal, signed through the Takeda subsidiary Millennium Pharmaceuticals will give Takeda an exclusive option to license global rights to relevant products. No financial details have been disclosed. 

LegoChem’s ConjuAll platform exploits novel linker chemistry and site-specific enzymatic conjugation to enable the development of ADC candidates that the firm claims demonstrate improved potency and longer half-life, improved tissue penetration, and faster onset of action. Commenting on the deal with Takeda, Yong Zu Kim, Ph.D., president & CEO of LCB said, “We are delighted that Takeda has recognized the potential of our proprietary ADC technology to address unmet medical needs in the ADC field. Takeda is a desirable partner for LCB as they have expertise and experience in the global commercialization of an antibody drug conjugate therapy.”

Established in 2006, LegoChem is harnessing its ConjuAll platform and medicinal drug discovery technology LegoChemistry™ to develop next-generation antibiotics, anticoagulants, and anticancer therapeutics. The firm’s LegoChemistry platform uses novel, drug-like scaffolds as the basis for drug discovery, in combination with its early ADME/T screening platform. In July 2016, Geom Therapeutics established a joint venture with LegoChem to develop and commercialize the latter’s LCB10-0200, a novel cephalosporin antibiotic targeting multidrug-resistant, Gram-negative pathogens, outside of Korea. In October 2016, LegoChem and Nordic Nanovector partnered to develop CD37-targeting ADCs for the treatment of leukemias. In December, RMX Biopharma negotiated a license to develop, manufacture, and commercialize LegoChem’s early clinical-stage, next-generation oxazolidinone antibiotic, LCB01-0371, in China. The agreement between Takeda and LegoChem comes 2 days after Takeda reported a $5.2 billion deal for the acquisition of Ariad Pharmaceuticals.

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