Pierre Fabre and Roche extend collaboration agreement on companion diagnostic development
May 18th 2018 - Castres, France - Pierre Fabre announced today the extension of a collaboration agreement with Roche on companion diagnostic development for W0101, Pierre Fabre's new antibody drug conjugate (ADC) product candidate targeting Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1) receptor currently in the international Phase I/II clinical study in patients with relapsed or refractory solid tumours. This first-in-human trial, launched in 2017, is led by Principal Investigator Dr. Christophe Massard, Head of the Therapeutic Innovation and Early Clinical Trial Department at Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France and involves other sites in France and Spain.
The initial collaboration was established for the development of a robust prototype immunohistochemistry (IHC) assay as a future companion diagnostic test for W0101. The collaboration was extended to the retrospective determination of IGF-1R expression in patients enrolled in the Phase I/II clinical study.
"This collaboration with Roche, the world leader in in vitro diagnostics and tissue-based cancer diagnostics, is an important step in advancing this novel therapeutic option for cancer patients whose tumours overexpress IGF-1R," stated Dr. Alexandre Passioukov, VP Translational Medicine at Pierre Fabre Research Institute. "It is noteworthy that the IGR-1R antibody used in the diagnostic assay binds a different epitope than the antibody from the therapeutic construct, both developed by Pierre Fabre Research Institute."
About W0101
W0101 is a first-in-class ADC targeting Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1) receptor discovered and developed at Institute de Recherche Pierre Fabre. IGF-1R has been recognised for its role in tumorigenesis and growth in a broad range of cancers W0101 is a novel approach leveraging the advantages of ADCs relying on a highly specific monoclonal antibody to selectively deliver a potent cytotoxic drug to tumour cells via IGF-1R-mediated internalisation. W0101 is designed for the treatment of patients with tumours overexpressing IGF-1R and is currently tested in a phase I clinical trial. Additional information on the clinical trial can be found at: https://clinicaltrials.
About Pierre Fabre
With a portfolio representing a continuum of activities spanning from prescription drugs and consumer healthcare products to dermo-cosmetics, Pierre Fabre is the 2nd largest dermo-cosmetics laboratory in the world, the 2nd largest private French pharmaceutical group and the market leader in France for products sold over the counter in pharmacies. Its portfolio includes several global brands and franchises among which Eau Thermale Avène, Klorane, Ducray, René Furterer, A-Derma, Galénic, Elancyl, Naturactive, Pierre Fabre Health Care, Pierre Fabre Oral Care, Pierre Fabre Dermatologie and Pierre Fabre Oncologie.
In 2017, Pierre Fabre generated 2,318 million euros in revenues, of which 62% came from its international business and 61% from its dermo-cosmetics division. Pierre Fabre, which has always been headquartered in the South-West of France, counts about 13,500 employees worldwide, owns subsidiaries and offices in 47 countries and enjoys distribution agreements in over 130 countries. In 2017, Pierre Fabre dedicated ca. 175 million euros to R&D efforts, split between oncology, central nervous system, consumer healthcare, dermatology and dermo-cosmetics.
Pierre Fabre is 86%-owned by the Pierre Fabre Foundation, a government-recognized public-interest foundation, and secondarily by its own employees through an international employee stock ownership plan.
The independent French certification group AFNOR audited Pierre Fabre for its corporate social responsibility policy at the "exemplary" level, according to the ISO 26000 standard for CSR.
To find out more about Pierre Fabre, please go to www.pierre-fabre.com
About Institut de Recherche Pierre Fabre (IRPF)
Dedicated to the fight against cancer and specialized in targeted biotherapy research, the Pierre Fabre Immunology Center, located at Saint-Julien-en-Genevois (France), near Geneva, is focused on research into monoclonal antibodies for use in oncology and the production of biotechnological active substances.
In 2014, Pierre Fabre's Antibody Biotechnology Unit (UBA) acquired new premises dedicated to the production of antibodies conjugated to cytotoxic agents (Antibody-Drug Conjugates - ADC). The premises facilitate the coupling and purification of antibodies with highly active compounds.
Pierre Fabre Translational Medicine Department was created in 2016 and is located in Toulouse (France). Its main remit is developing clinically viable patient selection options across all the R&D projects. In addition, the department has a sharp focus on the new target identification & validation via internal bioinformatics strengths combined with external partnerships network.
To find out more about Pierre Fabre, please go to www.pierre-fabre.com