Zai Lab to Present Data Highlighting ZL-1310, a Novel Antibody-Drug Conjugate (ADC) for Treatment of Solid Tumors

Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ: ZLAB; HKEX: 9688) today announced that it will present findings from preclinical studies highlighting the therapeutic potential of ZL-1310, the company’s global next-generation antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) program. The preclinical profile of ZL-1310 will be the focus of a poster presentation at the European Lung Cancer Congress 2024 (ELCC 2024), scheduled for March 20-23, 2024 in Prague, Czech Republic.

ZL-1310 is a novel and promising ADC within the Zai Lab global oncology R&D pipeline, targeting the Delta-like ligand 3 (DLL3), a validated therapeutic target in the treatment of small cell lung cancer (SCLC). DLL3, which is expressed on the cell surface of most SCLC, plays a pivotal role in promoting SCLC cell proliferation, migration and invasion.

“ZL-1310 has high affinity for the target, DLL3, and releases its payload both intracellularly and in the tumor microenvironment, also allowing for bystander effect of its camptothecin-derived payload,” said Rafael G. Amado, M.D., president, head of Global Oncology Research and Development, Zai Lab. “The encouraging preclinical data we will present at ELCC 2024 formed the basis for the ZL-1310 Phase 1 clinical trial that we initiated in January of this year.”

Data from the preclinical IND-enabling studies which will be shared at ELCC 2024 indicate that ZL-1310 exhibits a strong and specific binding to DLL3 on the cell surface, leading to internalization, cell cycle arrest and the induction of apoptosis in tumor cells. In-vivo, ZL-1310 effectively suppressed the growth of established human tumors in a dose-dependent manner in both cancer cell-derived (CDX) and SCLC patient sample-derived (PDX) xenograft models.

ZL-1310 was discovered with MediLink Therapeutics’ proprietary TMALIN platform, a next-generation ADC platform designed to leverage the tumor microenvironment to overcome the challenges with current ADC drugs. Zai Lab entered a partnership and exclusive worldwide license agreement with MediLink in April 2023. Subsequently, in January 2024, Zai Lab initiated a global Phase 1 study of ZL-1310 in patients with relapsed and refractory SCLC who have progressed after platinum-based treatment.

Details regarding the poster presentation at ELCC 2024 are as follows:

Title: Development and characterization of a novel DLL3-targeting antibody drug conjugate (ADC) for the treatment of solid tumors
Presenter: Linda N Liu, Senior Vice President, Biologics Discovery, Zai Lab
Date/Time: Friday, March 22, 2024, 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM CET
Location: Prague Congress Centre, Congress Hall Foyer