WuXi Biologics Announces Agreement with Candid Therapeutics on Trispecific T-cell Engager

SHANGHAI and SAN DIEGO, Jan. 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- WuXi Biologics ("WuXi Bio") (2269. HK), a leading global Contract Research, Development, and Manufacturing Organization (CRDMO), today announced an agreement with Candid Therapeutics, Inc. ("Candid"), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on becoming the leader in advancing T-cell engagers for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

Under the terms of the agreement, Candid will have exclusive global rights to a preclinical trispecific T-cell Engager discovered at WuXi Biologics' proprietary universal multispecific antibody platform WuXiBody^TM. WuXi Biologics is eligible to obtain an upfront payment, and development and sales milestones totaling up to $925 million as well as royalties.

Dr. Chris Chen, CEO of WuXi Biologics, commented, "We're glad to enable Candid to advance the progress of T-cell engagers through WuXiBody^TM. This collaboration not only showcases the platform's capabilities in trispecific discovery in addition to its well-validated bispecific discovery, but also reinforces WuXi Biologics' position as a preferred partner for pioneering next-generation modalities. With this collaboration, we have enabled seven global programs for molecules discovery through our Research (R) platform in 2024, and are eligible to receive around USD 140 million in near-term payments and the total potential payments exceeding USD 2.3 billion. We look forward to supporting Candid and other global partners in bringing more innovative therapies to benefit patients around the world."

"To further solidify our leadership position in T-cell engagers to deplete B cells for treatment of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, this transaction uniquely positions us with three TCE programs targeting BCMA, CD20, and CD19 in or near clinical development. We are excited to further the advances made by WuXi Biologics and to unlock the full potential of this molecule." said Dr. Ken Song, Chairman, President and CEO of Candid.

Based on the widespread adoption of WuXiBody^TM platform in bispecific antibody discovery, WuXi Biologics has upgraded it to deliver transformative and customized multispecific antibodies, addressing the growing global demand for these complex molecules. WuXiBody^TM can effectively break through the discovery and CMC barriers for the development of many multispecific antibodies with high expression yield, high stability, good solubility, and easy purification to homogeneity, expedite the process by 6-18 months and significantly reduce manufacturing costs, limitations still faced by many other current multispecific platforms. WuXiBody™ platform enables almost any mAb sequence pairs to be assembled into multispecific constructs, which are expected to have low immunogenicity risk and longer in vivo half-life. WuXiBody™ platform also has a unique structural flexibility, which makes it convenient to build various formats with different combinations of valencies (1+1, 2+2, 1+1+2, etc.) to meet the requirements of different target biology.

About WuXi Biologics

WuXi Biologics (stock code: 2269.HK) is a leading global Contract Research, Development and Manufacturing Organization (CRDMO) offering end-to-end solutions that enable partners to discover, develop and manufacture biologics – from concept to commercialization – for the benefit of patients worldwide.

With over 12,000 skilled employees in China, the United States, Ireland, Germany and Singapore, WuXi Biologics leverages its technologies and expertise to provide customers with efficient and cost-effective biologics discovery, development and manufacturing solutions. As of June 30, 2024, WuXi Biologics is supporting 742 integrated client projects, including 16 in commercial manufacturing (excluding COVID CMO projects and non-COVID dormant CMO project).

WuXi Biologics views Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) responsibilities as an integral component of our ethos and business strategy, and we aim to become an ESG leader in the biologics CRDMO sector. Our facilities use next-generation biomanufacturing technologies and clean-energy sources. We have also established an ESG committee led by our CEO to steer the comprehensive ESG strategy and its implementation, enhancing our commitment to sustainability.

For more information about WuXi Biologics, please visit: www.wuxibiologics.com

About Candid Therapeutics, Inc.

Candid Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on becoming the leader in advancing T-cell engagers for B-cell depletion to treat autoimmune diseases. Candid is advancing two lead B-cell depleting TCE antibody drug candidates, with a goal to broadly explore the potential of TCEs across multiple autoimmune diseases by targeting different B-cell protein targets, as well as evaluating different depths of B-cell depletion. Established in 2024 and headquartered in San Diego, CA, Candid is led by a team of entrepreneurial executives who have a track record of advancing programs into and through development and is supported by a distinguished syndicate of premier life science investors. 

SOURCE WuXi Biologics