ABP-110 is a next generation immuno-oncology agent. Like ABP-100, it is a dual-targeting antibody designed to redirect a patient’s immune cells to infiltrate their tumors. Once there, ABP-110 is designed to activate the immune cells, inducing them to kill the tumor cells without harming the patient’s normal cells.

ABP-110 is a tetravalent bispecific, or “TetraBi”, antibody that targets Glypican 3, or GPC3, on tumor cells and CD3 on T cells. GPC3 is expressed in a wide variety of tissues during embryonic development, but is not expressed in most adult tissue. Recent studies have shown that GPC3 is highly expressed in 70% – 100% of hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC, or liver cancer)^1,2. It is also expressed in other types of cancer, including lung squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma, ovarian clear cell carcinoma, and pediatric cancers. By simultaneously targeting GPC3 and CD3, ABP-110 is designed to harness the power of the immune system by redirecting T cells from peripheral circulation to infiltrate tumor tissue and mount a potent anti-tumor immune response.

Like ABP-100, we believe that ABP-110 will be a particularly effective T cell recruiter for two reasons. First, it is designed to have two potent binding sites for GPC3, providing exquisite affinity and specificity for cancer cells overexpressing GPC3. We believe that the bivalent binding of GPC3 will lead to increased potency of this agent relative to molecules that feature only a single binding site for GPC3. Second, ABP-110 is designed to be “functionally monovalent” for CD3. Although the molecule features two binding sites for CD3, they are positioned in such a way that only a single binding site can engage CD3 at any one time. ABP-110 is designed based on the structure of ABP-100.

1. Zhu ZW et al. (2001) Enhanced glypican-3 expression differentiates the majority of hepatocellular carcinomas from benign hepatic disorders. Gut, 48, 558–64.
2. Wang XY et al. (2006) Glypican-3 expression in hepatocellular tumors: diagnostic value for preneoplastic lesions and hepatocellular carcinomas. Hum Pathol, 37, 1435–41.