First Made-in-Singapore Antibody-Drug Conjugate (ADC) Approved to Enter Clinical Trials, Channel News Asia
5-Jan-2023
Singapore’s drug discovery efforts reached a new milestone as EBC-129, the first made-in-Singapore antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) that can selectively target cancer cells across a range of solid tumours, was cleared by the US FDA to progress into first-in-human studies and clinical development. The ADC and the test to be used for patient selection were discovered and developed through the collaborative efforts of A*STAR’s Bioprocessing Technology Institute (BTI) and Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), the Experimental Drug Development Centre (EDDC), and the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS).
Professor Damian O’Connell, CEO of EDDC, called the ADC a milestone for Singapore. Approvals will be sought from the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) and relevant ethics boards for the trial to open to patients in Singapore through the NCCS and National University Cancer Institute, Singapore (NCIS).
Dr Andre Choo, Deputy Executive Director at BTI and Dr Veronica Diermayr, Asset Development Leader at EDDC were interviewed live on CNA Singapore Tonight to share more about the ADC, its developmental process, and the next steps for the team.