Harbour BioMed announced that the first patient has been dosed in its ongoing phase I trial of the first-in-class anti-B7H7 (HHLA2) antibody HBM1020 (NCT05824663/Study 1020.1) in the United States. This study is evaluating the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and anti-tumor activity of HBM1020 in patients with advanced solid tumors. HBM1020, generated from Harbour Mice H2L2 transgenic mice platform, is the first therapeutic monoclonal antibody against B7H7/HHLA2 entering clinical development globally.

About HBM1020: HBM1020 is a first-in-class fully human monoclonal antibody generated from Harbour Mice H 2L2 transgenic mice platform. targeting B7H7/HHLA2. B7H7, also known as HHLA2, is a novel immune modulatory molecule belonging to the B7 family.

The B7 family is of central importance in regulating the T-cell response, making these pathways very attractive in cancer immunotherapy. Most of the validated targets in immune-oncology so far are related to B7 family, including PD- (L)1, and CTLA-4. The therapies against B7 family targets have already shifted the paradigm for cancer therapy with outstanding clinical benefits. As a newly discovered member of the B7 family, B7H7 expression is found non-overlapping with PD-L1 expression in multiple tumor types, which indicates an alternative immune evasion pathway besides PD-(L)1. In PD-L1 negative/refractory patients, B7H7 potentially plays a critical role for tumor cells to escape immune surveillance.

HBM1020 can enhance anti-tumor immunity by blocking the novel immune checkpoint target. Preclinical data demonstrated its immune activation and anti-tumor functional activities. With its innovative biology mechanisms, HBM1020 presents a novel anti-tumor therapeutics complementary to PD-(L)1 therapeutics to patients, especially for PD-L1 negative/refractory patients.