Scientists at The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute developed a novel antibody-drug conjugate combining tiancimycin, a natural compound from soil microbes, with a "double-decker" antibody targeting CD79b for diffuse large B cell lymphoma treatment.
The ADC demonstrated potent and selective activity against multiple CD79b-expressing cell lines and patient-derived primary chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells while sparing healthy, non-cancerous cells in blood samples from cancer patients.
The research team's conjugation platform required two years of chemistry work and successfully linked keto-TNM A, the most potent tiancimycin variant, to anti-CD79b DVD IgG1 antibodies using site-specific conjugation methods.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society Au, represents a promising next-generation immunotherapy approach for lymphoma patients, with mouse studies planned as the next development step.