I-Mab Acquires Bridge Health to Bolster CLDN18.2 Bispecific Program

I-Mab, a Maryland-based biotech company, has announced the acquisition of Bridge Health for $3 million upfront, solidifying its strategic pivot towards the development of givastomig, a CLDN18.2x4-1BB bispecific antibody. This move comes as part of I-Mab's efforts to strengthen its position in the competitive landscape of targeted cancer therapies.

Strategic Acquisition Enhances Givastomig's Potential

The acquisition of Bridge Health provides I-Mab with full ownership of the CLDN18.2 parental antibody, a critical component of givastomig. This antibody is considered the "secret sauce" behind the drug's potential success, demonstrating strong binding affinity to cell lines expressing high, medium, and even low levels of CLDN18.2.

I-Mab CEO Sean Fu, Ph.D., emphasized the significance of this transaction, stating, "With this transaction, I-Mab has further enriched the potential value of givastomig by strengthening upstream intellectual property rights, reducing future milestone payments, and unencumbering givastomig of future royalties."

The deal structure includes an upfront payment of $1.8 million, followed by noncontingent quarterly payments totaling $1.2 million. Bridge Health shareholders may also receive up to $3.9 million in potential development and regulatory milestones.

Promising Clinical Results and Future Outlook

Givastomig has shown encouraging results in early clinical trials, with an 83% objective response rate reported in certain doses during a phase 1b trial in gastric cancers. The company is now conducting a phase 2 trial, with enrollment progressing faster than expected.

Dr. Fu revealed that I-Mab is now anticipating a top-line readout from the phase 2 trial in the first quarter of 2026. He added, "Positive phase 1b dose escalation data recently presented at ESMO GI 2025 has enhanced our confidence that givastomig has the potential to be a best-in-class CLDN18.2-directed therapy for gastric cancers and beyond."

The company is also exploring the potential to expand givastomig's application to other solid tumors, positioning it as a versatile cancer treatment option.

Strategic Shift and Market Positioning

This acquisition marks a significant step in I-Mab's strategic pivot, which began earlier this year when the company announced the pausing of work on the Sanofi-partnered anti-CD73 antibody uliledlimab. The shift resulted in a 27% reduction in the company's workforce as resources were redirected towards the givastomig program.

I-Mab is positioning givastomig as a potential best-in-class therapy, claiming advantages over existing treatments such as Astellas' Vyloy and various antibody-drug conjugates. The company asserts that givastomig can be effective in patients with low levels of CLDN18.2 expression while offering improved efficacy and tolerability compared to current options.

The development of givastomig is part of a global partnership with ABL Bio, with I-Mab leading the effort and sharing worldwide rights equally, excluding greater China and South Korea.