Astellas and Ambrx announce oncology collaboration

Astellas has announced a new collaboration with fellow pharmaceutical company Ambrx that will focus on the creation of new oncology therapies.

The organisations will work together to discover and develop novel antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) that allow for the targeted delivery of drugs to specific tissue, with the potential commercial value of the partnership coming to around $300 million (196.94 million pounds).

Ambrx is known for creating optimised ADCs using site-specific conjugation technology that have been demonstrated to offer higher levels of potency and a wider therapeutic index.

The collaboration will involve contributions from Agensys, an affiliate of Astellas which specialises in therapeutic antibody research and development in cancer, as well as possessing experience in the field of ADC research.

Dr David Stover, Astellas' senior vice-president and Agensys site head, said: "Ambrx offers a novel approach to allow creation of site-specific and highly stable conjugations that have the potential to further optimise drug delivery to tumour cells."

This comes after the company announced new alliances with the Tokyo Institute of Technology and Nagasaki University last month, focusing on tropical disease research.