Shanghai – September 24, 2026 -- Sanyou Biopharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. and NovoCodex Biopharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. have signed a strategic collaboration agreement to jointly develop next-generation antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), combining Sanyou Bio's AI-driven antibody discovery platforms with NovoCodex's clinically validated site-specific conjugation technology.
NovoCodex brings a clinically validated conjugation platform to the partnership
NovoCodex's proprietary NovoCodeTM platform incorporates unnatural amino acids into antibodies to achieve defined, controllable conjugation sites, producing homogeneous ADC products rather than the heterogeneous mixtures typical of traditional random conjugation. The technology has been validated in the pivotal Phase III trial of ARX788 and supported ARX305 in showing a favorable safety window and durable antitumor activity in advanced renal cancer patients with high CD70 expression.
Sanyou Bio contributes an antibody discovery track record spanning 800-plus ADC projects
Established in 2020, Sanyou Bio's ADC discovery platform has delivered more than 800 ADC conjugation projects and built capabilities in dual-target and dual-payload ADC design. Dual-target ADCs use two distinct antigen epitopes to enhance tumor selectivity, while dual-payload ADCs incorporate two payloads with different mechanisms of action to expand the therapeutic window and address drug resistance.
The collaboration targets a closed-loop R&D workflow across three focus areas
The partnership will integrate antibody discovery via Sanyou Bio's AI-STAL platform with NovoCodex's site-specific conjugation process development, jointly explore target combinations for dual-target ADCs and payload pairs for dual-payload ADCs, and establish joint project teams spanning target research, antibody screening, conjugation development, and in vitro/in vivo evaluation.
Dr. Xuejun Liang, Chairman and CEO of NovoCodex, said the companies aim to jointly develop ADC therapeutics with a wider safety window and more durable efficacy, leveraging Sanyou Bio's ability to rapidly identify high-quality antibody candidates from its molecular libraries.
Dr. Guojun Lang, Founder and CEO of Sanyou Bio, said the collaboration allows the company's molecular discovery capabilities to directly serve a conjugation technology platform already validated in clinical development, enabling faster translation of dual-payload ADC engineering into therapeutic candidates within a more predictable conjugation system.