Sep. 2026 saw a series of licensing agreements, acquisitions and strategic investments across oncology, autoimmune, metabolic, cardiovascular and neurological diseases. Multispecific antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), oral and long-acting metabolic therapies, AI drug discovery and innovative delivery platforms were among the areas attracting attention.
Affinity and fusion tags make recombinant proteins easier to express, purify, and detect. Yet a tag can also become an experimental variable. For studies that depend on the target’s structure, activity, or molecular interactions, a tag-free final product may be preferable. This article explains what tag-free means, when tag removal is useful, how it is done, and which properties still need to be verified after purification.
Kir7.1, an inwardly rectifying potassium channel encoded by the KCNJ13 gene, is a member of the Kir channel family. In 2026, Kir7.1 research advanced rapidly in both structural biology and precision therapeutic development. Multi-state Cryo-EM structures revealed how phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP₂), cholesterol, and bioactive steroids modulate channel conformation; prime editing of the KCNJ13 L144P variant restored channel function; and anticodon-engineered transfer RNA (ACE-tRNA) promoted targeted readthrough of the W53X premature termination codon and improved electroretinographic responses in Leber congenital amaurosis type 16 (LCA16) mouse model [1–3]. Additional structural studies clarified the molecular basis of the R162W loss-of-function phenotype and the pore-blocking mechanism of ML418 [5,10]. Together, these advances position Kir7.1 at the intersection of retinal ion homeostasis, channel structural biology, and precision therapy.
Aquaporins (AQPs) are best known as membrane channels that transport water. As research has advanced, however, their biological significance has expanded far beyond basic water transport to include cerebral edema, autoimmunity, brain fluid clearance, and neurodegenerative diseases. Among the AQP family, aquaporin-4 (AQP4) has attracted particular attention because of its distinctive distribution and complex regulation in the central nervous system (CNS).
Global biopharma dealmaking remained active throughout July and August 2026, spanning major acquisitions, licensing agreements and platform collaborations. ADCs, autoimmune and metabolic diseases, CNS programs, RNA technologies, AI-driven drug discovery and in vivo CAR-T were among the most active areas.
Epithelial Membrane Protein 2 (EMP2) is emerging as a promising membrane protein target in cancer therapy. Recent studies have explored EMP2-targeting strategies, including siRNA delivery systems, monoclonal antibodies, and ADCs, demonstrating potential in suppressing tumor progression and modulating the tumor immune microenvironment.
DIMA Biotechnology provides in-stock biotin-labeled full-length membrane proteins prepared using Nanodisc technology. Expressed in mammalian cells to preserve native conformation and biological function, these proteins effectively support SPR/BLI binding analysis, antibody discovery, CAR-T positivity assessment, and research on challenging membrane protein targets.
June 2026 Biopharma Deal Wave: Multibillion-Dollar M&A Surges Alongside Licensing Deals for Cutting-Edge Technologies Such as T-Cell Engagers and RNA Editing. Chinese Pharmaceutical Companies Are Expanding Their Global Partnerships from Single-Asset Licensing to Multi-Target Platform Deals, While Oncology Continues to Lead and Attract Strong Global Investor Interest.
The first STEAP1-targeted therapy, Xaluritamig, has delivered promising Phase III clinical results, achieving a PSA50 response rate of 59%. Multiple therapeutic modalities，including bispecific ADCs, CAR-T cells, and trispecific T-cell engagers are advancing rapidly and demonstrating strong potential, ushering in a new era of targeted therapy for prostate cancer.
The approval of the world’s first CAR-T therapy for solid tumors not only marks a new milestone in CAR-T treatment, but also brings CLDN18.2 into the spotlight as a highly attractive target. During CAR-T development, accurately and reliably detecting CAR positivity is an important foundation for evaluating product quality and functional performance.
Classic targets such as EGFR, RET, RAS, ER, and AR continue to evolve, while precision oncology advances from identifying driver mutations toward earlier intervention and more refined patient stratification.
Bispecific antibody development is evolving beyond simply combining two targets, with T-cell engagers, PD-1×VEGF, PD-1×CTLA-4, and 4-1BB-based approaches emerging as key drivers of next-generation immuno-oncology innovation.
Beyond HER2 and TROP2, emerging targets such as CLDN18.2, B7-H3, FOLR1, and HER3 are rapidly gaining momentum, signaling a shift in ADC development from established targets to a highly competitive multi-target landscape.
From April to May 2026, global biopharma dealmaking rebounded, with major pharma focusing on de-risked assets and growing interest in platform technologies such as ADCs, TCEs, and multispecific antibodies. Meanwhile, Chinese biotech accelerated global expansion, oncology shifted toward “platform technology + multi-mechanism combinations,” and AI drug discovery moved closer to real-world industrial adoption.
With updated Phase III clinical data released by Roche in 2025, trontinemab has emerged as a leading example of TfR1-mediated blood–brain barrier delivery, achieving high amyloid clearance with low ARIA-E incidence in Alzheimer’s disease patients. By exploiting TfR1-dependent transcytosis, this bispecific antibody highlights TfR1/CD71 not only as a central regulator of iron metabolism, but also as a highly promising gateway for CNS therapeutic delivery.
In Q1 2026, progress in the autoimmune field is no longer characterized by fragmented innovation, but by systematic breakthroughs centered on a handful of core targets. Starting from these targets, the following provides a detailed overview of the most representative BD deals and clinical milestones within each category.
The blood–brain barrier (BBB) is emerging as a critical gateway for drug delivery to the central nervous system. With agents such as Trontinemab and Pabinafusp alfa advancing into clinical validation, BBB shuttling mechanisms are reshaping the criteria for assessing target druggability.
Site-specific protein ligation is increasingly critical in applications such as protein labeling, antibody conjugation, and multifunctional fusion protein construction. Sortase A (SrtA), a transpeptidase from Gram-positive bacteria, is widely used for its LPXTG motif recognition and efficient ligation with oligoglycine substrates, with engineered variants further improving catalytic efficiency and control.
Ahead of the 2026 AACR Annual Meeting, global business development (BD) activity surged in March, showing clear structural trends. On one hand, large-scale M&A and licensing deals continued to concentrate in oncology and immunology. On the other hand, emerging technology platforms such as AI-driven drug discovery, targeted protein degradation (TPD), and multispecific antibodies gained significant momentum. Meanwhile, Chinese biotech companies deepened their participation in global dealmaking through NewCo structures and regional licensing.
This report systematically organizes key March transactions by therapeutic area to highlight the core logic and emerging hotspots in innovative drug BD.
From abstract frequency, the top ADC targets at AACR 2026 rank approximately as follows: HER2 (64) > TROP2 (33) > EGFR (29) > PD-L1 (18) > NECTIN4 (17) > B7-H3/CD276 (15) > FOLR1 (12) > c-Met (11) > CDH17 (10) > DLL3 (8) > CLDN18.2 (7). Below is a concise overview of these key ADC targets.
AACR 2026 trends clearly indicate a turning point. GPCR-related research is rapidly expanding beyond traditional small-molecule receptor modulation into tumor microenvironment regulation, Treg depletion, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), bispecific antibodies, multispecific biologics, and radiopharmaceuticals.
Immunometabolism has emerged as a key frontier in drug discovery, with GPR84 gaining attention as a medium-chain fatty acid receptor linking metabolism and immune regulation. It plays a dual role by enhancing macrophage phagocytosis and anti-tumor immunity, while also promoting inflammation through NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Despite its clear biological significance and involvement in the tumor microenvironment, the clinical development of GPR84-targeted therapies remains challenging, highlighting the need for a deeper understanding of its structure, signaling, and therapeutic potential.
SLC7A11 (xCT), the functional subunit of the cystine/glutamate antiporter System xc⁻, plays a central role in tumor redox balance by mediating cystine uptake for glutathione (GSH) synthesis, thereby protecting cancer cells from oxidative stress and ferroptosis. Recent studies published in *Cell* and *Nature* in 2025 further revealed that SLC7A11 can also trigger disulfidptosis under specific metabolic conditions, highlighting a context-dependent vulnerability in cancer cells. These findings position SLC7A11 at the intersection of ferroptosis, metabolic stress, and emerging cell death pathways, making it a promising therapeutic target. This article summarizes the structural features of SLC7A11, its regulatory role in ferroptosis, and recent advances in related therapeutic strategies.
Although February coincided with the Lunar New Year holiday and a seasonal slowdown in market activity, global biopharma business development remained highly active. From RNAi licensing and CAR-T acquisitions to antibody collaborations and AI-driven drug discovery alliances, multiple headline transactions were announced in rapid succession, many reaching multi-billion-dollar values.
At the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, innovative therapies targeting CCR8 showed a strong surge. LM-108 from LaiSun Pharma/China National Biotec Group and ICP-B05 from Innocare demonstrated promising efficacy, with significant depletion of tumor-infiltrating Treg cells. Meanwhile, major pharmaceutical companies including Bristol Myers Squibb, Agenus, Gilead, and Jounce have made substantial investments in CCR8 programs, highlighting the strategic importance of CCR8 as a key target for overcoming resistance to PD-1/L1 therapies.
In this review, we present an integrated overview of TREM2, covering its structure, expression patterns, biological functions, disease relevance, and the current landscape of TREM2-targeted drug development, with the aim of clarifying its potential as an emerging therapeutic target.
STAB1 (Stabilin-1) is an emerging immunoregulatory receptor expressed on tumor-associated macrophages. Targeting STAB1-driven macrophage reprogramming offers a promising strategy to reverse tumor immune suppression and enhance cancer immunotherapy responses within the tumor microenvironment.
January 2026 global pharma BD and M&A activity highlights sustained capital concentration in innovative targets, AI-driven drug discovery, bispecific antibodies, and peptide therapeutics. Large multinational pharmaceutical companies continue to rapidly reinforce pipelines through acquisitions, licensing, and strategic collaborations, while Chinese innovators steadily enhance their negotiating power on the global stage.
Membrane proteins are critical drug targets, but their hydrophobic and structurally complex nature has limited antibody discovery. Nanodisc technology stabilizes membrane proteins in a lipid-like environment, preserving native conformations and enabling effective antibody immunization and screening.
Over the past year, Cadherin-3 (CDH3, P-cadherin), traditionally regarded as a classical cell-cell adhesion molecule, has increasingly attracted attention in oncology drug development and international scientific conferences. Early clinical data from CDH3-targeted antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) in solid tumors, particularly non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), have demonstrated promising objective response signals, drawing significant interest from both academia and the biopharmaceutical industry. In parallel, bispecific antibodies and T cell redirection strategies targeting CDH3 have entered early clinical or translational exploration. Collectively, these advances suggest that CDH3 is transitioning from a tumor-associated marker to a therapeutically actionable cancer target with translational potential.
Cadherin-17 (CDH17) is a non-classical calcium-dependent adhesion protein predominantly expressed in the intestinal epithelium and highly upregulated in multiple gastrointestinal tumors. Due to its tumor-specific expression, CDH17 has become a promising therapeutic target. Current CDH17-targeting strategies include: Antibody-drug conjugates (ADC), Cell therapies (CAR-T/CAR-NK), Monoclonal, bispecific, or trispecific antibodies.
The thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor (TSHR) has re-emerged as a key target in endocrinology and autoimmune disease research. Therapeutic strategies targeting TSHR have expanded rapidly, encompassing blocking monoclonal antibodies, small-molecule antagonists, and novel approaches to modulate pathogenic autoantibodies. Clinical studies demonstrate encouraging safety and early efficacy of TSHR-directed antibodies in Graves’ disease and thyroid eye disease, while orally available antagonists and inverse agonists offer new options for long-term treatment. Importantly, recent findings extend the role of TSHR beyond hyperthyroidism to immunometabolic regulation and thyroid cancer, positioning TSHR as a multidimensional therapeutic target across immunity, metabolism, and oncology.
In December 2025, global biopharma business development (BD) activity surged toward year-end, reflecting a clear rhythm and structural pattern. Early-month platform-level collaborations by multinational pharma companies were followed by mid-month antibody and metabolic disease deals, and culminated in a wave of late-December out-licensing transactions by Chinese innovative drug developers.
Over the past year, the PD-1 immunotherapy landscape has once again witnessed intensive progress. From multiple anti–PD-1 monoclonal antibodies achieving Phase III success in new indications to the rapid emergence of bispecific antibodies and increasingly sophisticated combination regimens that continue to push efficacy boundaries, PD-1–targeted therapies remain firmly positioned at the core of cancer immunotherapy.
This article provides a systematic overview of the global PD-1 development landscape, major drug modalities, and the latest clinical advances, helping readers understand where PD-1 targeted therapies currently stand in the evolving immuno-oncology ecosystem.
Between 2024 and 2025, Programmed Death-Ligand 1 (PD-L1) targeted therapies have once again become a focal point in global cancer immunotherapy. On one hand, PD-L1 based bispecific antibodies, such as PD-L1xVEGF and PD-L1xCTLA-4, have continued to release encouraging mid to late stage clinical data in lung cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, and gastric cancer, demonstrating efficacy that may surpass traditional monoclonal antibodies. On the other hand, as first-generation PD-L1 monoclonal antibodies, including Atezolizumab, Durvalumab, and Avelumab, approach patent expiration, pharmaceutical companies worldwide are accelerating efforts toward differentiated innovation.
PD-L1 is no longer viewed merely as a standalone drug target. Instead, it has emerged as a central hub for immune combination therapies and multifunctional molecular designs, fundamentally reshaping the R&D landscape of PD-L1 targeted drugs.
Henlius Biotech’s innovative anti-PD-L1/VEGF bispecific antibody HLX37 has received approval for clinical trials by the China NMPA, marking a significant development in immuno-oncology. This dual-target antibody combines immune checkpoint inhibition and anti-angiogenesis, enhancing the synergy between immunotherapy and tumor microenvironment modulation. It underscores the growing influence of domestic biologics in the global immuno-oncology landscape and highlights the need for a deeper understanding of the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway’s structure, regulation, and signaling mechanisms for overcoming resistance and improving precision treatment strategies.
In recent years, immunotherapy targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis has rapidly evolved, moving beyond first-generation monoclonal antibodies to include PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibodies, PD-L1 ADCs, and various combination strategies. Clinical development and capital markets are shifting upstream, with landmark transactions like SSGJ-707 highlighting the commercial value of immune checkpoint inhibitors. Key industry insight: differentiation and long-term success depend not on pursuing immuno-oncology, but on choosing the right target and approach. Understanding the biological rationale and clinical implications of PD-1 versus PD-L1 targeting requires a deep dive into the signaling pathway itself.
In antibody drug development, early discovery is often the most time-consuming stage. Immunization, screening, validation, and sequence processing can delay a project by weeks or even months, affecting program initiation, partnership timing, and competitive positioning.
In April 2025, a clinical case report in Nature Medicine offered groundbreaking evidence for precision therapeutics targeting SCN2A. The study described a neonate with early-onset, drug-resistant epilepsy caused by a gain-of-function (GoF) SCN2A mutation—encoding the α-subunit of the voltage-gated sodium channel NaV1.2. Following intrathecal administration of elsunersen, an SCN2A-targeting antisense oligonucleotide (ASO), the patient experienced a marked reduction in seizure frequency and showed early neurological improvement.
In November 2025, business development (BD) activities in the biopharmaceutical industry slowed slightly compared with October, yet the month still delivered several high-value and strategically important deals. Overall, November’s BD landscape can be summarized by two major themes: large-scale M&A and high-impact licensing agreements. Global pharma companies pursued acquisitions to strengthen pipelines in rare diseases,…
Using multiple recombinant protein fragments from the same target—such as extracellular domains, functional regions, and membrane-proximal segments—has become an essential strategy in therapeutic antibody discovery. This approach improves epitope diversity, enhances screening accuracy, reduces conformational bias, and accelerates the identification of high-value antibodies including blockers, agonists, and internalizing antibodies.
In recent years, nanobodies (single-domain antibodies, VHHs) have rapidly emerged as a hot research direction in antibody and biologics development, thanks to their unique structure and biological properties. Derived from camelids, these single-domain antibodies feature a small size, high stability, and easy engineering capabilities, making them ideal for applications in drug discovery, diagnostics, imaging, and immunotherapy.
Membrane proteins are molecules that are critically important for life, undertaking key functions such as signal transduction, material transport, and cell recognition. With the deepening of drug development and structural biology research, membrane proteins have become central targets for new drug discovery and mechanistic studies. However, due to their structural complexity and poor stability, their…
Explore how recombinant proteins derived from human, mouse, monkey, and dog enable more accurate antigen selection, cross-species validation, and improved antibody discovery. Learn why multi-species antigens are essential for screening, affinity evaluation, and translational drug development.
In October 2025, the global biopharmaceutical sector remained highly active, with innovation-driven collaborations and mergers & acquisitions continuing to heat up. Major deals were struck across diverse areas—including antibody drugs, ADCs, RNA therapeutics, AI-driven drug discovery, autoimmune diseases, gene editing, drug delivery, and neurological disorders—reflecting sustained investor and industry confidence in the biopharma landscape. The…
On January 10, Harbour BioMed and Kelun-Biotech out-licensed the overseas rights of their jointly developed TSLP antibody HBM9378/SKB378 to Windward Bio. The deal reached a total value of up to USD 970 million. HBM9378/SKB378 is a fully human anti-TSLP monoclonal antibody co-developed by Harbour BioMed and Kelun-Biotech, designed to regulate immune responses by inhibiting the thymic…
Weight loss isn’t just about “eating less and exercising more“; it’s also about the molecular dynamics behind it. While GLP-1 drugs have been a global hit over the past few years, the development of weight loss drugs extends far beyond this one. New metabolic targets are constantly being discovered, and research and clinical progress are…
The 2025 World Lung Cancer Conference (WCLC) will be held by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) in Barcelona, Spain, from September 6th to 9th, 2025. As one of the most influential events in the global oncology community, WCLC provides a platform for academic exchange on the latest research findings and…
Membrane proteins account for approximately 20-30% of proteins encoded by the human genome and play central roles in cell signaling, substance transport, and cell recognition. Aberrant expression and dysfunction of membrane proteins are closely associated with a variety of diseases, including cancer, neurological disorders, and metabolic diseases, making them key focuses in drug discovery. Among…
In recent years, the role of chemokine receptors in immune regulation, tumor development, and tissue repair has attracted increasing attention. C-X-C chemokine receptor type 7 (CXCR7), also known as ACKR3 (Atypical Chemokine Receptor 3), serves as an atypical receptor for CXCL12/CXCL11. Owing to its unique signaling mechanism and functional roles in various diseases, CXCR7 has…