Certain intracellular proteins critical for cellular function translocate to the surface of cancer cells, particularly when the cells are under stress. This relocation to the cancer cell surface makes these targets particularly good candidates for ADC development by adding tumor selectivity. Antibodies to these targets will only bind to cancer cells but not to normal cells where the targets are inside the cell and unavailable for antibody binding.

MBrace has developed a novel, proprietary approach to the manufacture of antibodies against intracellular targets that allows sufficient expression of the antibodies while maintaining the function of the native target in the manufacturing cells or system. This approach allows these intracellular targets to be viable antibody drug targets – many for the very first time. MBrace has three international patent families pending covering production of antibodies to intracellular drug targets, including antibodies against the target of our second ADC program.