5th European Antibody Congress 2009: November 30–December 2, 2009, Geneva, Switzerland

The 5th European Antibody Congress (EAC), organized by Terrapin Ltd, was held in Geneva, Switzerland, which was also the location of the 4th EAC.1 With more than 220 delegates, this event was the largest antibody congress held in Europe during 2009. Numerous pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies active in the field of therapeutic antibody development were represented, as were start-up and academic organizations. The global trends in antibody research and development were discussed, including success stories of recent marketing authorizations (catumaxomab, certolizumab pegol, rilonacept, ustekinumab and ofatumumab developed by Fresenius, UCB-Celltech, Regeneron, Centocor and Genmab, respectively) and success and attrition rates for this fast expending class of therapeutics. Case studies covering clinical progress in anti-CD20 (Genmab, LFB) and anti-IGF-1R mAbs (Biogen Idec, Imclone, Merck/Pierre Fabre), antibody-drug conjugates (ImmunoGen, Genentech, Seattle Genetics, Wyeth/Pfizer) and new scaffolds (Ablynx, Adnexus/Bristol-Myers Squibb, Domantis/GlaxoSmithKline, Dyax, Molecular Partners, Scil Proteins) were presented. Major antibody structural improvements were showcased, including the latest global developments in 2-in-1 antibodies (Genentech), dual antibodies (Abbott), trifunctional antibodies (Trion Pharma, Fresenius), agonist antibodies (MedImmune, Kyowa Hakko Kirin), Fc-engineered (Centocor, MedImmune), glyco-engineered (Centocor, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, Lonza) aglycosylated IgGs (University of Cambridge) and non-activating formats (Genmab). Improvements of drugability (Pierre Fabre, Pfizer), alternative quantification methods based on mass spectrometry (Novartis, CEA), progress in manufacturing (Biogen Idec, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Merck KG) and patent strategies (Edwards, Angell, Palmer & Dodge) were also discussed. Last but not least, identification of mAbs against new therapeutic targets (Pierre Fabre, Roche, Crucell) and translations to clinical studies (Novartis) were presented, as well as progresses in antibody humanization and engineering (Université de Montpellier, French Army Health Department, Merck-Serono, Pierre Fabre).