In pair of trispecific deals, AbbVie expands access to Harpoon tech, gains NK cell engagers

AbbVie’s expanded partnership with Harpoon is the company’s second deal in as many days focused on developing trispecific engager therapies. While the Harpoon deal is focused on T cell therapies, the other, with Dragonfly, could mark the pharma’s entrance into NK cell engagers.

Under the deal with Harpoon Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:HARP), AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) is adding two targets and options to up to four additional targets to a 2017 collaboration that uses Harpoon’s Tri-specific T cell Activating Construct (TriTAC) technology to develop cancer therapies. AbbVie also gained an option to HPN217, a BCMA-targeting TriTAC for multiple myeloma that is slated for an IND submission this year. ...