One of many hotter areas of most cancers drug analysis entails utilizing a specific sort of bispecific antibody because the spine for therapeutic combos supposed to convey a multi-pronged assault to tumors. Crescent Biopharma has one such bispecific antibody in its pipeline. A brand new partnership with Kelun-Biotech offers Crescent a promising molecule to mix with that lead asset.
The bispecific drug of Waltham, Massachusetts-based Crescent is code-named CR-001. Kelun-Biotech’s drug is SKB105, an antibody drug conjugate (ADC). The businesses are already on observe to convey their respective medicine into Part 1/2 testing in early 2026 as monotherapies for strong tumors.
Underneath deal phrases introduced Thursday, Kelun-Biotech has granted Crescent unique rights to develop and commercialize its ADC within the U.S., Europe, and all different markets exterior of Better China, the place the biotech relies. In the meantime, Crescent has granted Kelun-Biotech unique rights to develop and commercialize its bispecific drug in Better China. The deal permits each corporations to independently develop CR-001 in extra combos, together with combos of the bispecific antibody with proprietary ADC’s of their respective pipelines.
“This collaboration expands our pipeline with the addition of SKB105, furthers our technique of advancing a number of modalities throughout our portfolio, and accelerates our efforts to ship synergistic combos with CR-001, which has the potential to be a foundational spine remedy,” Crescent CEO Joshua Brumm mentioned in a ready assertion.
Crescent’s CR-001 is designed to deal with most cancers by blocking two targets, the proteins PD-1 and VEGF. Such medicine have grow to be scorching commodities. Summit Therapeutics, Merck, Instil Bio, BioNTech, and Pfizer have added PD-1/VEGF-targeting bispecific antibodies to their pipelines — all through offers with China-based biotechs. Within the case of BioNTech, its bispecific drug led to a wide-ranging partnership with Bristol Myers Squibb, which may pair the asset with its personal most cancers immunotherapies.
Crescent and its PD-1/VEGF bispecific drug got here from Paragon Therapeutics, a Waltham-based firm that conducts biotechnology analysis and kinds startups to advance its discoveries. Crescent was the fifth firm shaped round belongings found by Paragon. Earlier this 12 months, Crescent went public in a reverse merger.
In preclinical testing, Crescent has mentioned CR-001 confirmed “sturdy anti-tumor exercise.” The corporate added that its drug’s anti-VEGF exercise can also normalize vasculature on the tumor website, which has the potential to enhance on effectiveness of mixture therapies, akin to combos with ADCs. The Crescent pipeline consists of two ADCs licensed from Paragon. The Kelun-Biotech ADC goes after integrin beta-6 (ITGB6), a protein extremely expressed by some cancers.
In an investor presentation, Crescent mentioned it plans mixture research with a number of ADCs from each corporations including that the partnership allows speedy technology of combo knowledge. Crescent additionally mentioned Kelun-Biotech’s knowledge will inform the technique for utilizing CR-001 as a spine for different attainable mixture research.
The monetary phrases of the Crescent’s partnership with Kelun-Biotech has cash altering palms in each instructions. Crescent is paying Kelun-Biotech $80 million up entrance and will shell out as much as $1.25 billion extra in milestone funds. The deal additionally places Kelun-Biotech in line for a further unspecified sum from Crescent if the Massachusetts firm undergoes a near-term change of management or enters a sublicense settlement with a 3rd get together. In the meantime, Kelun-Biotech is paying Crescent $20 million up entrance; as much as $30 million extra is tied to achievement of milestones.
Separate from the partnership settlement, Crescent introduced a $185 million non-public placement to help the corporate by key medical trial readouts anticipated to start out in 2027, when the corporate expects to obtain preliminary knowledge from checks of CR-001 as a monotherapy and as a part of combos with ADCs. Contributors within the inventory sale embrace Forbion, Fairmount, Vestal Level Capital, BVF Companions, ADAR1, Balyasny Asset Administration, and Venrock Healthcare Capital Companions. These traders agreed to buy greater than 13.7 million Crescent shares for $13.41 every, which is identical because the inventory’s closing worth on Wednesday.
In its report of third quarter 2025 monetary outcomes final month, Crescent mentioned its $133.3 million money place was anticipated to fund operations by 2027. With the extra capital from the non-public placement, Crescent mentioned it expects its money will final into 2028.
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