Wellmarker Bio is pleased to sign a clinical collaboration and supply agreement with MSD (Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA) to evaluate a first-in-class treatment with a novel mechanism in combination with KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab), MSD's anti-PD-1 therapy.

SEOUL, South Korea , Feb. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Wellmarker Bio Co., Ltd (WMBIO) (CEO: Dong-Hoon Jin, Department of Convergence Medicine, Ulsan College of Medicine and Asan Medical Center,), a predictive biomarker-driven biotech company dedicated to the discovery, development, and commercialization of novel therapies for the treatment of cancer, today announced the company has entered a clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with MSD (Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA) on 7^th Feb.

Under the agreement, WMBIO will sponsor the Phase 1 (or Phase 1b) clinical trial for WM-A1-3389, a novel therapeutic antibody for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) patients with low or no PD-L1 expression, in combination with KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab), MSD's anti-PD-1 therapy. Some NSCLC patients with low or no PD-L1 expression have shown limited response to treatment with immunotherapies alone and there is a high unmet need in these patient populations. WMBIO is also planning to expand the target patient group to other solid tumor indications.

WM-A1-3389 is a novel therapeutic antibody targeting a new immune checkpoint protein discovered by Wellmarker Bio and has demonstrated efficacy across different PBMC humanized models. An additive benefit of WM-A1-3389 and anti-PD-1 antibody was evidenced in preclinical mouse models including PD-1-resistant CT26 and LLC-1 mouse models.

"This clinical trial collaboration with MSD holds great significance for WMBIO as it allows us to evaluate a first-in-class drug with a novel mechanism in combination with KEYTRUDA," said Dong-Hoon Jin, CEO of Wellmarker Bio. "Now that we have seen WM-A1-3389 demonstrates a favorable safety margin in combination with immunotherapies in preclinical studies, we are excited to collaborate with MSD to further investigate the therapeutic potential of an additive benefit when combining WM-A1-3389 with KEYTRUDA."

WM-A1-3389 development was funded by Korea Drug Development Fund (KDDF). In eary 2022, this study was selected by the follow-up project of Korea Drug Development Fund (KDDF, Director. Muk, Hyunsang) in the preclinical stage.In addition, Wellmarker Bio is co-developing liquid biopsy companion diagnostics (CDx) with Cytogen. PharmaVentures Ltd., a UK-based premier transaction advisory firm, acted as the exclusive advisor for this collaboration and the ongoing partnering efforts for WM-A1-3389.

KEYTRUDA® is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA.

For further information, please contact:
Jai-Hee Moon
Strategy planning manager (email: jhmoon@wmbio.co)

About Wellmarker Bio

Wellmarker Bio Co., Ltd (WMBIO) is the first company to be spun out from the renowned Asan Medical Center, Korea's largest hospital. It focuses on the development of novel anticancer drugs derived from comprehensive biomarker analysis. Since it was founded in 2016, WMBIO has developed 9 first-in-class drugs for solid tumor indications. Having access to a wide array of patient samples from Asia and using predictive biomarkers to guide therapeutic development in innovative ways have allowed WMBIO to rapidly move its assets from exploratory to preclinical and then into early clinical stages. WMBIO's R&D strategy is to focus mainly on drug discovery and early-stage development of lead compounds to build a deep and wide pipeline of products, with the most advanced assets in phase 1 clinical trials. Once a drug candidate is at that stage, WMBIO would seek to find global pharmaceutical companies to partner with for co-development or licensing.

For further information, visit: www.wmbio.co

About WM-A1-3389

WM-A1-3389 is a novel therapeutic antibody targeting a new immune checkpoint protein discovered by Wellmarker Bio. WM-A1-3389's novel target is abundantly expressed in a variety of cancer types and has demonstrated efficacy across different PBMC humanized models. An additive benefit of WM-A1-3389 and anti-PD-1 antibody was evidenced in preclinical mouse models including PD-1-resistant CT26 and LLC-1 mouse models.

About PharmaVentures

PharmaVentures is a premier transaction advisory firm and a leading international company in partnering, M&A deals and strategic alliances. For the past 30 years, PharmaVentures has acted as advisor on over 1,000 deal related projects covering licensing, mergers, acquisitions, divestments, and joint venture activities for companies worldwide. We are regulated through PharmaVentures Capital Ltd.

Find out more www.pharmaventures.com

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SOURCE Wellmarker Bio