LONDON: GSK plc said Tueday it has agreed to acquire a potential best-in-class trispecific T cell-engager from Chimagen Biosciences, a privately held biotechnology company, for development and commercialization in multiple myeloma.

The program is expected to enter Phase I trials in 2027. Under the agreement, GSK will pay an upfront fee for full global rights to the therapy, and Chimagen will be eligible for success-based development and commercial milestone payments. The deal has a total potential value of up to $750 million and is subject to customary closing conditions.

T cell-engagers have shown transformational efficacy in multiple myeloma but have been associated with difficult tolerability profiles. The Chimagen asset is designed to address that by binding to T cells while simultaneously targeting two validated tumor-associated antigens. GSK said the approach aims to achieve a deeper and more durable response than existing T cell-engagers, along with improved tolerability, potentially enabling broader adoption and earlier use in treatment.

The U.S. T cell-engager market for multiple myeloma is expected to exceed $10 billion by 2032.

“Today’s deal secures a promising T cell engager and advances GSK’s leadership goals in blood cancer,” said Hesham Abdullah, senior vice president and global head of oncology in GSK’s research and development division. “The agreement complements our existing portfolio in multiple myeloma, adding a new potential option to address the different needs of patients facing this complex disease.”

Zhenhao Zhou, chief executive officer of Chimagen Biosciences, said the agreement combines his company’s precision T cell-engager program with GSK’s global development and commercial capabilities.

“Working with GSK combines our precision T-cell engager programme with their global development and commercial capabilities to redefine care for multiple myeloma patients,” Zhou said. “This agreement also marks another major milestone for our platforms as we continue to build an industry-leading pipeline of multi-specific antibody candidates.”

Multiple myeloma is the third most common blood cancer globally, with approximately 180,000 new cases diagnosed each year. While generally considered treatable, it is not currently curable, and research into new therapies is vital because the disease commonly becomes refractory to available treatments.

The agreement builds on GSK’s existing relationship with Chimagen, following a previous deal to acquire CMG1A46, a clinical-stage dual CD19 and CD20-targeted T cell-engager currently in Phase I trials for B-cell malignancies and B-cell dependent autoimmune disorders.

Chimagen Biosciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing novel multi-specific T cell-engagers and NK cell-engagers generated by proprietary antibody engineering platforms.

GSK said its oncology ambition is to increase overall quality of life, maximize survival and change the course of disease, expanding from its current focus on blood and women’s cancers into lung and gastrointestinal cancers, as well as other solid tumors.