PharmAbcine, an antibody new drug developer, has signed a CDMO (contract development and manufacturing organization) contract for PMC-309, an immunotherapy candidate, with Australia’s ThermoFisher Scientific.

Under the accord, ThermoFisher will speed up developing and producing PMC-309 by using its “Quick to Clinic” integrated services.

PMC-309 is a drug that targets V-domain Ig-containing suppressor of T-cell activation (VISTA), a type of immune checkpoint. It has a differentiation point by suppressing immune checkpoints other than the current immunotherapies, which mostly target programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) or programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), such as Keytruda, Opdivo, and Tecentriq, the company said.

“VISTA does not overlap with PD-1 mechanism as it is expressed mainly in myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) and not T cells,” a PharmAbcine official said. “PMC-309 was confirmed to activate the suppressed immune response by binding with VISTA at the non-clinical stage while maximizing its efficacy when used in combination with a PD-1 immunotherapy agent.”

The Korean company added that it plans to start researching the data needed for submitting the investigational new drug (IND) application this year and will apply for IND in 2021.