Jacobio Pharmaceuticals has announced that the first two patients have been dosed in the Phase 1/2a clinical trial of SHP2 inhibitor JAB-3312 in combination with PD-1 antibody Pembrolizumab and MEK inhibitor Binimetinib respectively, thereby triggering the US$20 million milestone payment from AbbVie.

The US$20 million payment is the first milestone payment following the initial upfront fee of US$45 million at the outset of the Jacobio and AbbVie's collaboration. "Jacobio's SHP2 inhibitor JAB-3068 is the second SHP2 inhibitor drug candidate to receive investigational new drug (IND) approval from the U.S. FDA to enter clinical development. Since embarking on our collaboration with AbbVie, we have been working with AbbVie to accelerate the global development of SHP2 inhibitors, including JAB-3068 and JAB-3312. This clinical milestone provides financial support and injects confidence into our follow-up research and development," stated Dr. Yinxiang Wang, Chairman and CEO of Jacobio.

Jacobio entered into a licensing agreement with AbbVie in May 2020 to develop and commercialize SHP2 inhibitors, including JAB-3068 and JAB-3312, on a worldwide basis. SHP2 inhibitors (JAB-3068 and JAB-3312) are Jacobio's innovative, in-house, small molecule anti-cancer drug candidates, which are being investigated in clinical trials as either monotherapy or in combination therapy at more than 30 sites globally.

About Jacobio

Jacobio is committed to providing more products and solutions to people's health. Our mission is to provide compelling innovations for creating a pipeline of life-changing medicines. Our vision is to become a global leader recognized for our impact in drug R&D together with our partners. The company's R&D centers are in Beijing, Shanghai and Massachusetts, with a platform and expertise in developing allosteric inhibitors against protein tyrosine phosphatase, KRAS and transcriptional factors.