Baylink Biosciences announced today that it will present new preclinical data from its innovative Antibody Drug Conjugate (ADC) platform at the upcoming American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting, taking place April 25-30, 2025, in Chicago. The presentations will highlight the company's novel linker technology and its lead candidate BLB-101, designed to target difficult-to-treat cancers with high unmet medical needs.
BLB-101, Baylink's most advanced candidate, is an antibody-drug conjugate specifically engineered to target Claudin 6/9 positive tumors while delivering the topoisomerase 1 inhibitor exatecan with a drug-to-antibody ratio (DAR) of 8. This high efficiency delivery system represents a significant advancement in ADC technology.
"We are very pleased to share these results from Baylink's innovative antibody drug conjugate platform. The data presented at this year's AACR meeting demonstrate the potential for Baylink's technology to overcome critical challenges in the ADC field," said Alice Chen, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer and Founder of Baylink. "We believe BLB-101 offers the potential for best in class performance for CLDN6/9+ tumors such as ovarian, endometrial, and lung cancer."
Novel Linker Technology Addresses Key ADC Challenges
At the core of Baylink's innovation is its proprietary linker platform, designed to overcome persistent challenges in ADC development. Traditional ADC approaches have been limited by tumor resistance, narrow therapeutic windows, and difficulties in delivering diverse payloads effectively.
Baylink's scientists have developed a technology that enables the delivery of various payloads, including hydrophobic chemotherapy agents and protein degrader drugs, while maintaining high drug-to-antibody ratios. Crucially, this is achieved without compromising stability or pharmacokinetic properties.
The platform's innovative design reduces non-specific uptake into healthy tissues and cells, potentially minimizing adverse events while enhancing potency through improved homogeneity, stability, and efficacy. This approach may significantly expand the therapeutic window for cancer treatments.
Targeting Claudin 6/9 Expression in Cancer
The company's lead candidate, BLB-101, targets Claudin 6 (CLDN6), a tight junction protein highly expressed in various human cancers but absent in normal adult tissues. This selective expression pattern makes it an ideal target for ADC therapy.
CLDN6 is prominently expressed in ovarian cancer, endometrial cancer, and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Similarly, Claudin 9 (CLDN9), which shares high homology with CLDN6, is nearly undetectable in normal tissues but upregulated in ovarian and endometrial cancers.
By targeting these cancer-specific markers, BLB-101 aims to deliver its cytotoxic payload precisely to tumor cells while sparing healthy tissues, potentially improving both efficacy and safety profiles compared to conventional chemotherapy.
Expanding ADC Applications with Dual Payload Designs
Beyond single-agent delivery, Baylink's platform enables the development of dual payload ADCs and Degrader Antibody Conjugates (DACs). This versatility could potentially address multiple cancer resistance mechanisms simultaneously and expand treatment options for patients with limited therapeutic alternatives.
The company will present two posters at the AACR meeting:
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"A linker platform for antibody drug conjugates (ADCs): expanding the therapeutic window" (Poster number: 7463) on April 30, 2025, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM
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"Preclinical evaluation of BLB-101, a topoisomerase-inhibitor-based anti-CLDN6/9 antibody-drug conjugate featuring a proprietary hydrophilic linker" (Poster number: 1578) on April 28, 2025, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Technical Innovations in Linker Design
The technical challenges of delivering hydrophobic payloads have historically limited ADC development. Baylink's scientists have incorporated specific design features into their linker technology that allow conjugation of these challenging hydrophobic payloads with high drug-to-antibody ratios.
This approach could potentially expand the range of therapeutic agents that can be delivered via the ADC format, opening new possibilities for treating cancers that have proven resistant to current therapies.
The company's platform represents a comprehensive approach to ADC development, combining novel linkers with innovative payloads to build differentiated products for cancer treatment. As the field of targeted cancer therapies continues to evolve, Baylink's technology may contribute significantly to the next generation of precision oncology treatments.
The upcoming presentations at AACR will provide the scientific community with detailed insights into both the platform technology and the specific applications in development, particularly the promising BLB-101 candidate for Claudin 6/9 positive tumors.
