Biopharmaceutical company Innovent Biologics Inc (HKEX:01801) announced Monday that it has entered into a collaboration agreement with Shenogen Pharma Group Ltd for advanced cancer.

This collaboration will evaluate the combination therapy of Innovent's Tyvyt (generic name: sintilimab injection)with Shenogen's SNG1005, in patients with advanced cancer.

Tyvyt (sintilimab Injection) is the anti-PD-1 inhibitor co-developed by Innovent and Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly). Tyvyt (sintilimab injection) is a type of immunoglobulin G4 monoclonal antibody, which binds to PD-1 molecules on the surface of T-cells, blocks the PD-1/ PD-1 Ligand-1 (PD-L1) pathway and reactivates T-cells to kill cancer cells. Tyvyt (sintilimab injection) is the only PD-1 antibody in China branded by both a local biopharmaceutical company and a global pharmaceutical company.

SNG1005 is a conjugate of angiopep-2 and paclitaxel that Shenogen licensed from overseas. SNG1005 binds to the low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1), which is abundantly expressed on the Blood Brain Barrier (BBB), which facilitates efficient transcytosis movement of paclitaxel across the BBB.

In addition, Shenogen has the full development and commercialization rights for SNG1005 in Greater China. The Investigational New Drug (IND) application of Phase II/III clinical trial for breast cancer carcinoma brain metastases (BCBS) in China has been approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA).

The combined therapy of immune check point inhibitors and anti-tumor therapeutics has become the standard approach for the development of anti-tumor treatments. Innovent will explore the potential efficacy of anti-PD-1 inhibitor in combination with SNG1005 in various cancers, concluded Dr Kun Meng, Chairman of Shenogen.