SK Biopharmaceuticals (326030.KS) is set to expand investment in targeted protein degradation (TPD) based on cash flow secured from its epilepsy treatment "Cenobamate." Following the central nervous system (CNS) and radiopharmaceutical therapy (RPT) segments, the company is positioning TPD as its next growth axis, further solidifying its strategy to become a "big biotech."
SK Biopharmaceuticals unveiled its next-generation pipeline and platform strategy centered on TPD during an R&D session held alongside its first-quarter earnings announcement on the 7th. The company explained that it has completed the roadmap for its three core R&D axes through this session, following earlier sequential disclosures of its CNS and RPT strategies.
Based on the stable cash flow generated from Cenobamate, the company is pursuing: strengthening disease-modifying therapy (DMT) capabilities for CNS disorders; building the RPT platform value chain; and expanding new TPD-based pipelines.
The session revealed preclinical results for "SKT-18416," a p300 targeted protein degrader. While p300 is a key protein involved in cancer cell growth, existing inhibitors also suppressed the structurally similar CBP protein, leading to limitations such as blood toxicity.
SK Biopharmaceuticals explained that SKT-18416 secured safety through a mechanism that selectively degrades only p300 without affecting CBP. The company said it also confirmed tumor growth inhibition effects in prostate cancer, multiple myeloma, and CBP loss-of-function cancer models.
In particular, the company emphasized that it demonstrated the potential for precision cancer treatment through the "synthetic lethality" effect, in which cancer cells die when p300 is removed from cancer cells that have lost CBP function. The company is developing the treatment with the goal of submitting an Investigational New Drug (IND) application in the first half of 2027.
The company also unveiled its proprietary platform "MOPED™ (MOlecular Proximity Enabled Detection)." This platform is a technology that discovers molecular glues that selectively degrade specific proteins by inducing protein-protein interactions. A key feature is its ability to target "undruggable" targets that were difficult to approach with existing technologies.
SK Biopharmaceuticals explained that it has built a proprietary library of more than 30 E3 ligases and is also incorporating AI-based predictive modeling technology. Through this, the company is enhancing the efficiency of candidate discovery by predicting the potential for ternary complex formation and target degradation activity.
"We have been reinvesting the sustainable and growing profits generated from our new drug into next-generation pipelines and platforms such as TPD and RPT," an SK Biopharmaceuticals official said. "We will communicate closely with the market regarding the results that become visible going forward."
