September 16, 2026,Shanghai Escugen Biotechnology Co., Ltd. and Sovran Bio, Inc. announced that they have entered into an agreement to co‑develop a first‑in‑class, pan‑tumor bispecific antibody‑drug conjugate (ADC).
The novel target combination jointly defined by the two parties enables preferential binding to tumor cells while sparing normal tissues. Leveraging Escugen’s proprietary EZWi‑Fit® platform technology, the resulting bispecific ADC can deliver proprietary payloads selectively to virtually all tumors without causing damage to healthy tissues.
Dr. David Meininger, Founder of Sovran, commented: “This new co‑development agreement represents the outcome of intensive efforts over the past year to define the requirements for optimal target engagement for this novel bispecific. Integrating three mechanisms of action within a single‑drug molecule, this bispecific ADC is expected to build differentiated therapeutic advantages.”
Dr. Qing Zhou, Co‑Founder and CEO of Escugen, stated: “This co‑development program marks significant progress by both companies in deciphering the desired product attributes for a pan‑tumor ADC. We look forward to jointly advancing this highly promising program.”
About Sovran
Sovran Bio is a biopharmaceutical research and development company established in 2024 and based in Woodinville, Washington. The company is focused on designing novel approaches to pan-tumor therapy. Pipeline efforts include pursuit of additional solutions to challenges inherent to broad-spectrum targeting in oncology, autoimmunity and other disease areas. For more information, visit https://sovranbio.com/.
About Escugen
Shanghai Escugen Biotechnology Co., Ltd. was established in 2017 in Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong New District, Shanghai, focusing on the R&D of innovative drugs for oncology and autoimmune diseases. The founding team has decades of industrial R&D experience in top-tier biopharmaceutical companies of both international and domestic. The expertise of the team covers the whole multi-functional drug development processes, including antibody engineering, bio-conjugation technology, CMC, and clinical development.
The EZWi-Fit® linker-payload technology is an ADC technical platform invented by Escugen. Its global intellectual property is wholly owned by Escugen. The clinical safety and efficacy of ADCs based on this platform have been initially verified by the clinical trials currently being carried out by Escugen. Recently, ADCs against innovative targets based on this platform developed by a number of domestic and foreign partners have also successively entered the clinical trial stage.
