Genome & Company targets novel ADC antigens for next licensing deals

Genome & Company is accelerating its shift from a microbiome-focused biotech to a first-in-class oncology drug developer, with a strategy centered on novel-target antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) aimed at securing a series of global licensing deals and rebuilding investor confidence.

The company laid out the strategy during a press conference at Conrad Seoul in Yeouido, Seoul, on Tuesday, saying it aims to complete at least one technology transfer this year and another next year by focusing on early-stage assets targeting novel antigens.

Genome & Company CEO Hong Yoo-seok explains the company’s first-in-class oncology drug development and global licensing strategy during a press conference in Yeouido, Seoul, Tuesday. (Credit: Genome & Company)

Hong Yoo-seok, CEO of Genome & Company, said the company’s strategy reflects a broader change in the global pharmaceutical market, where major drugmakers are increasingly seeking differentiated first-in-class assets to offset patent cliffs and secure new growth engines.

“After 2010, the environment for new drug launches changed significantly,” Hong said. “If a drug misses first-in-class status, it has become much more difficult to achieve commercial success.”

Hong said this trend is particularly evident in immunotherapies and ADCs. In the PD-1 market, a small number of products dominate global sales despite the launch of multiple agents in the same class. In ADCs, he said, latecomers targeting already validated antigens such as HER2 or TROP2 face growing difficulty in differentiating themselves from first movers.

Genome & Company is trying to avoid that race by focusing on targets discovered through GNOCLE, its genome analysis-based novel target discovery platform. The company is developing ADCs and immunotherapies around targets such as CNTN4 and ITGB4, while also expanding into fibrosis through a separate small-molecule program.

Hong said the company has concluded that licensing out assets at the preclinical stage is a more realistic strategy than carrying all development costs alone.

“We believe licensing out at the preclinical stage is the right approach to secure both profitability and financial soundness,” he said. “By using the capabilities and capital of our partners, we intend to maximize the development potential of our drugs.”

Genome & Company has already completed two global licensing deals involving first-in-class oncology assets.

In 2024, the company licensed a novel target ADC antibody program to Switzerland-based Debiopharm. The asset, now known as Debio 0633, is being developed by Debiopharm as a potential first-in-class ADC using the Swiss company’s Multilink linker technology. Debiopharm is conducting follow-up preclinical work, including evaluation of optimal indications, linker-payload combinations and chemistry, manufacturing and controls development. According to Genome & Company, Debiopharm is targeting an investigational new drug (IND) application around late 2027 to early 2028.

In 2025, Genome & Company licensed GENA-104, a CNTN4-targeting immuno-oncology candidate, to U.K.-based Ellipses Pharma. Ellipses has since assigned the development code EP0089 to the asset and plans to conduct a phase 1/2a study in Korea, Australia, the U.K. and the U.S.

EP0089 targets CNTN4, a cell surface protein expressed on cancer cells that is known to suppress T-cell activity. The drug is designed to block the interaction between CNTN4 on tumor cells and amyloid precursor protein on T cells, thereby restoring immune cell activity against cancer.

The planned trial will enroll patients with advanced solid tumors who have no standard treatment options or have failed existing therapies. Target cancer types include gastric cancer, gastroesophageal junction cancer, liver cancer, bladder cancer, gallbladder cancer, endometrial cancer, melanoma and prostate cancer, where CNTN4 expression has been identified. The phase 1 portion will evaluate the maximum tolerated dose and recommended phase 2 dose, followed by an expansion stage to explore early efficacy signals in selected patient groups.

Hong said the fact that the partner is preparing a multi-country clinical trial is important because it suggests that the licensed asset is moving beyond a nominal early-stage transaction.

“The partner is investing resources at a scale that would be difficult for a domestic biotech to handle alone,” he said. “If good data are secured, the possibility of a larger licensing deal in the future could also increase.”

Genome & Company is also using CNTN4 as the basis for GENA-104 ADC, an ADC candidate designed to deliver cytotoxic payloads selectively to CNTN4-expressing cancer cells. The company said this dual use of CNTN4, as both an immuno-oncology and ADC target, shows that its target discovery capability can be developed into a broader platform rather than a single-asset strategy.

Its next ADC programs are GENA-120 and GENB-120, both centered on ITGB4.

GENA-120 is an ADC candidate targeting ITGB4, a cell surface receptor involved in cancer invasion and metastasis. ITGB4 is known to be highly expressed in some solid tumors, including head and neck cancer, cervical cancer and colorectal cancer, while showing relatively lower expression in normal tissues. Genome & Company is positioning ITGB4 as a novel ADC target that could improve tumor selectivity, a key factor in determining both efficacy and safety.

GENB-120 is a bispecific ADC targeting both ITGB4 and TROP2. TROP2 is already a validated ADC target, but TROP2-only ADCs have faced limitations related to toxicity, resistance and varying response rates across tumor types. Genome & Company said GENB-120 was designed to deliver cytotoxic payloads selectively to cancer cells that express both ITGB4 and TROP2, potentially improving tumor selectivity compared with TROP2-only approaches.

Cha Mi-young, head of Genome & Company’s New Drug Research Institute, presents the company’s novel target ADC pipeline during a press conference in Yeouido, Seoul, Tuesday. (Credit: Genome & Company)

Cha Mi-young, head of Genome & Company’s New Drug Research Institute, said the company began developing GENB-120 after identifying co-expression of ITGB4 and TROP2 in cancer cells and tumor tissues, including pancreatic, lung and bladder cancers.

“When analyzing the strengths of novel targets, we focused on the fact that ITGB4 and TROP2 are co-expressed in cancer cells and tumor tissues associated with pancreatic, lung and bladder cancers,” Cha said. “We believe this approach could help address unmet needs associated with existing TROP2-targeted therapies.”

Genome & Company presented preclinical data for GENA-104 ADC, GENA-120 and GENB-120 at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2026 in April. The company said GENA-120 showed effective internalization and lysosomal trafficking in ITGB4-expressing cancer cells and induced immunogenic cell death. In in vivo models, it reported tumor growth inhibition of up to 89 percent to 110 percent at 3 mg/kg in colorectal and head and neck cancer cell line-derived xenograft models.

For GENB-120, the company said preclinical data showed stronger cytotoxicity in ITGB4 and TROP2 double-positive cancer cell lines than in TROP2-only ADCs, while maintaining a safer profile in normal cells. It also reported stronger efficacy than TROP2-targeting ADCs at low doses of 0.75 to 1 mg/kg in xenograft models.

The company is also developing GENC-116, a small-molecule candidate targeting NUAK1 kinase for fibrotic diseases. Fibrosis develops when repeated inflammation or injury causes organ tissues to harden, leading to gradual organ dysfunction in areas such as the kidney, liver and lung. Genome & Company said the program was selected for support under the national drug development project last year and is now moving through preclinical development.

However, Genome & Company’s strategy still faces major execution risks. EP0089 is only entering early clinical development, while GENA-104 ADC, GENA-120 and GENB-120 remain largely at the preclinical stage. Novel targets can provide differentiation, but they also require human data to prove safety, efficacy and clinical relevance.

The ADC field is also becoming increasingly competitive, with multinational drugmakers already accumulating clinical and commercial experience around major targets.

For Genome & Company to stand out as a later-stage entrant, it will need to show not only target novelty but also clearer evidence of tumor selectivity, toxicity management and the potential to overcome resistance.

Funding is another issue. The company has recently raised capital through convertible bonds, convertible preferred shares and third-party allotment of new shares to support ADC development and business expansion. While the financing gives Genome & Company additional resources, investors may continue to weigh the possibility of future dilution.

As a result, the company’s valuation is likely to depend less on past licensing records and more on follow-up development milestones. Key events include the first patient dosing for EP0089, early safety data from the phase 1/2a trial, additional preclinical packages for GENA-104 ADC and GENB-120, and the outcome of ongoing partnering discussions with global companies.

Hong said Genome & Company is now in a stronger position than in its previous licensing discussions because its current ADC candidates are attracting interest from multiple global companies.

“Our two first-in-class licensing deals have demonstrated our research and business development capabilities,” he said. “The first-in-class ADC candidates we are developing now are in areas of high interest to global companies, including big pharma, putting us in a position to discuss more diverse forms of partnerships than before.”

He added that the patent cliff facing global pharmaceutical companies has created an important window of opportunity.

“Global big pharma companies are actively seeking first-in-class pipelines to respond to patent cliffs,” Hong said. “As various global companies view our first-in-class candidates as attractive licensing assets and continue discussions with us, we will work to turn those discussions into concrete results.”

Genome & Company shares also rose sharply on Tuesday, reflecting investor interest in the company’s licensing strategy. As of 2:10 p.m. Tuesday, shares were trading at around 5,900 won ($3.89), up 21.8 percent from the previous trading day.