Almac Discovery And Formosa Pharmaceuticals Announce Global Licensing Agreement For Development And Commercialisation Of ALM-401, A First-In-Class EGFRxROR1 Bispecific Antibody-Drug Conjugate

Formosa Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Almac Discovery announce a global licensing agreement for development and commercialisation of ALM-401, a first-in-class engineered bispecific Antibody-Drug Conjugate (ADC), addressing the high unmet needs of cancer patients worldwide suffering with intractable and aggressive solid tumours.

The agreement facilitates the next phases of CMC and drug development by Formosa, including IND submission and early clinical proof-of-concept in international clinical trials.

ALM-401 has been the culmination of a multi-year R&D programme at Almac Discovery deploying their proprietary OmniaScape informatics platform, protein engineering and medicinal chemistry capabilities.

The design of ALM-401 has built upon the recent clinical successes within the ADC field, including selection of a linker-payload matched to potential clinical cancer indications, and the molecule also benefits from being approximately half the size of conventional ADCs, thereby facilitating enhanced solid tumour penetration. The main features of ALM-401 include:

• Innovative bi-specific target-pairing based on co-expression and functional analysis of specific, aggressive solid tumours
• Sustained high-efficacy in vivo in PDX models; as presented at the 2025 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR; Chicago) annual meeting
• Half-the-size of conventional ADCs for enhanced solid tumour penetration and optimised manufacturing.

Formosa Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (6838.TW) is a clinical stage biotechnology company with primary focus in the areas of ophthalmology and oncology, with particular CMC and manufacturing expertise for specialist ADC therapeutics. “Formosa Pharma is pleased to have this opportunity to bring ALM-401 into our development pipeline. This novel, next-generation ADC complements our corporate strategy and resources and promises to deliver a differentiated therapy to cancer patients worldwide. We look forward to collaborating closely with Almac Discovery in advancing this exciting program through clinical trials, commercialization, and beyond.” said Dr. Erick Co, President and CEO of Formosa Pharmaceuticals.

“We are pleased to have met Formosa’s exacting selection requirements for Next Generation ADC candidates,” said Dr Stephen Barr, President and Managing Director of Almac Discovery. “This agreement allows the seamless progression of the molecule into clinical evaluation, driven by Formosa.”

“In addition to an excellent preclinical efficacy profile, high-quality, robust and scalable CMC and manufacturing is a key competitive advantage for ADCs in the fast-moving race for effective cancer therapeutics” commented Dr Graham Cotton, Vice-President of Protein Therapeutics, Almac Discovery.

About Formosa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Formosa Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (6838.TW) is a clinical stage biotechnology company with primary focus in the areas of ophthalmology and oncology. The company’s flagship program, APP13007, is a novel topical formulation of the potent corticosteroid, clobetasol propionate, and was approved by the US FDA in 2024 for the treatment of post-operative inflammation and pain following ocular surgery, with multiple regional licensing partners worldwide. The company’s proprietary nanoparticle formulation technology (APNT), through which APP13007 was developed, improves the dissolution and bioavailability of APIs for topical, oral, and inhaler administration. For more information, visit www.formosapharma.com

About Almac Discovery Limited
Almac Discovery has drug discovery facilities in Belfast, Edinburgh and Manchester. It is led by an experienced team with a track record in delivering successful pre-clinical programmes. Internal capabilities include discovery biology and bioinformatics, protein engineering, medicinal chemistry and translational sciences. Almac Discovery utilises its unique blend of protein engineering and small molecule capabilities to create and develop First in Class and Best in Class NCEs through to the pre-clinical candidate/IND-ready stages, after which it seeks to collaborate with partners to accelerate their development.

The Discovery business benefits from collaboration and licensing partnerships with global R&D-focused biotech and pharmaceutical organisations.