Pinotbio, a local biotech specializing in antibody-drug conjugates (ADC), said it has been selected for a major ADC development project sponsored by the Korea Drug Development Fund (KDDF).

The initiative, named the "Global Blockbuster ADC Anticancer Drug Component Development Project," aims to support the development of key ADC components, including payloads, linkers, and antibodies.

The KDDF chose a total of three institutions for each component, and Pinotbio has been selected as a company that will head the payload development within the ADC project.

The other two companies include Seoul National University R&DB (research and development business) Foundation (antibody) and Abtis (linker).

This ADC project is part of the KDDF's "ADCaptain Project," which was launched this year with the goal of discovering ADC drug candidates with global competitiveness.

The culmination of these efforts will lead to the establishment of an ADC consortium company. Notably, the KDDF revealed in the ADCaptain project roadmap released last April their plans to establish a U.S. subsidiary and pursue NASDAQ listing by 2024.

Pinotbio boasts an ADC platform based on a new class of camptothecin drugs and optimized linkers.

Their ADC drug showed similar physicochemical properties, including efficacy comparable or superior to the blockbuster drug DXd (Deruxtecan), used in AstraZeneca-Daiichi Sankyo's Enhertu.

As a result, the company secured a technology transfer agreement last year with Celltrion, worth a total milestone of 1.5 trillion won ($1.1. billion)

The company also signed a contract development organization (CDO) partnership with Lotte Biologics earlier this year and was also selected for a national project by the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy in May.

Cumulatively, Pinotbio has attracted investments totaling 640 billion won.

"It's an honor to collaborate with the nation's top antibody and linker development companies," Pinotbio CEO Jung Doo-young said. "Cooperation in the ADC value chain is paramount."

The company will do its best to show off its best research and development capabilities to ensure that ADC candidates based on camptothecin payloads are successfully derived, Jung added.