Antibody-drug conjugates: Design and development for therapy and imaging in and beyond cancer, LabEx MAbImprove industrial workshop, July 27–28, 2017, Tours, France

The annual “Antibody Industrial Symposium”, co organized by LabEx MAbImprove, MabDesign and Polepharma, was held in Tours, France on June 27–28, 2017. The focus was on antibody-drug-conjugates (ADCs), new entities which realize the hope of Paul Ehrlich's magic bullet. ADCs result from the bioconjugation of a highly cytotoxic drug to a selective monoclonal antibody, which acts as a vector. Building on knowledge gained during the development of three approved ADCs, brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris®), ado trastuzumab emtansine (Kadcyla®) and inotuzumab ozogamicin (Besponsa®), and the many ADCs in development, this meeting addressed strategies and the latest innovations in the field from fundamental research to manufacturing.