Catalent and Sanofi to Collaborate on ADC Development

Catalent Pharma Solutions and Sanofi-Aventis R&D have entered into a collaboration to develop Sanofi’s proprietary antibodies using Catalent’s SMARTag antibody drug conjugate (ADC) platform. Catalent’s precision protein-chemical engineering technology will enable Sanofi to evaluate site-selective payload conjugation to enhance ADC pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and safety.

Sanofi teams will be carrying out the collaborative research at Catalent’s facility, in Emeryville, CA, which was formerly headquarters to Redwood Bioscience Inc. In October 2014, Catalent announced the purchase of the remaining stake in Redwood after in vivo and in vitro proof of concept milestones were achieved and improved toxicity profile was demonstrated with SMARTag ADCs compared with conventional ADCs.

The SMARTag site-specific protein modification and cytotoxin-linker technologies developed by Redwood enable the generation of homogenous bioconjugates engineered to enhance potency, safety, and stability. The technology employs natural post translational modifications found in human cells to create one or more aldehyde tags at designated sites on protein molecules. These chemical handles are then stably conjugated to cytotoxic payloads to prevent their systemic release. The SMARTag platform provides precise payload positioning and defined stoichiometry of payload–protein ratios. The control afforded by the technology enables identification of superior drugs from libraries of differentially designed conjugates.

Source: Catalent