Vietnam will begin offering Lao as one of eight foreign languages in its general education curriculum, starting with a pilot program in schools located near the Laos–Vietnam border.
Vietnam to Introduce Lao Language in General Education Near Border Areas

How is vocational education today forging the craftspeople of tomorrow?
BEIJING, June 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Finding Answers in China from China.org.cn:
As China’s economic structure continues to upgrade, the demand for new-type skilled workers is growing rapidly. Vocational education is gaining increasing social recognition. How is vocational education developing in China? Can it meet the needs of the times and cultivate high-caliber technical professionals?
In this episode, Sinologist Elsbeth van Paridon, also an editor at CICG Americas, travels to Jiangsu — one of China’s economic powerhouse provinces — to find the answers.
How is vocational education today forging the craftspeople of tomorrow?
https://youtu.be/nVBjLw1tXsk
Clarivate Partners with CRKN to Further Canada’s Research Goals
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Web of Science Provides Expanded Access to Essential Research Tools and Data for Canadian Libraries and Research Institutions
LONDON, June 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT), a leading global provider of transformative intelligence, today announced a multi-year partnership with the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN), a consortium of libraries and research institutions in Canada. The agreement provides 55 Canadian universities with expanded access to the Web of Science and is designed to enhance inter-member research collaborations, improving accessibility to Web of Science content for all members.
The Web of Science platform is home to the world’s first and most trusted publisher-neutral citation index – Web of Science Core Collection – and connects developments along the entire research lifecycle to that trustworthy core. It streamlines the discovery of content from the world’s leading journals alongside conference papers, books, dissertations and theses, datasets, patents, preprints, awarded grants, policy documents and more.
For CRKN members, new extended access to the Web of Science API will allow researchers to use the rich Web of Science metadata to support their research projects. Access to the Derwent Innovations Index and the Policy Citation Index will help members better understand the societal impact of their outputs.
Craig Olsvik, Director, Content Program at CRKN, said: “CRKN is pleased to have renewed our agreement with Clarivate for Web of Science through 2029. Expanded access to Web of Science content will serve Canadian researchers across the country, and we’re particularly happy to now include extended access to the Web of Science API for our members.”
Bar Veinstein, President of Academia and Government at Clarivate, said: “We are delighted to extend our partnership with CKRN. Canada holds a prominent and often collaborative position in academic research globally, with its research contributions surpassing the international average in terms of innovation and patents.
“This new agreement underscores the value we offer to Canadian institutions and researchers through the Web of Science. We remain committed to supporting the research community in Canada by providing the necessary tools and resources to foster innovation and discovery which ultimately drives societal impact.”
About Clarivate
Clarivate is a leading global provider of transformative intelligence. We offer enriched data, insights & analytics, workflow solutions and expert services in the areas of Academia & Government, Intellectual Property and Life Sciences & Healthcare. For more information, please visit www.clarivate.com
Media contact:
Rebecca Krahenbuhl, Senior Manager, External Communications, Academia & Government
newsroom@clarivate.com
“The Summer Hikaru Died” Anime Reveals 2nd Main Trailer and New Casts
Unveils the Opening Theme Song “saikai” performed by Vaundy
~Streaming Worldwide Only on Netflix from July 5th~
TOKYO, June 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — CyberAgent, Inc. today has revealed the second main trailer and additional cast announcements of the television anime of up-and-coming award winning author Mokumokuren’s “The Summer Hikaru Died” (original published by KADOKAWA, co-produced by CyberAgent and KADOKAWA, animation produced by CygamesPictures).
“The Summer Hikaru Died” is a hit horror manga series about an ordinary high school boy, Yoshiki, who experiences various mysterious incidents in his life with Hikaru, a mysterious being who imitates his best friend Hikaru Indo. The story of “whatever it is” and the boy’s madness has garnered significant attention, making it a must-see anime film.
The newly revealed second main trailer features the opening theme song “saikai” performed by Vaundy which is also unveiled for the first time. Additionally, comments from the new cast members, Yoshiki Nakajima as Yuta Maki and Shion Wakayama as Yuki Tadokoro have also arrived.
The Anime “The Summer Hikaru Died” will be available on Netflix worldwide from July 5th, 2025. We will continue to provide additional details.
Second Main Trailer: https://youtu.be/jWKO241TtdQ
- Vaundy chosen to perform the opening theme song!
The opening theme song will be performed by Vaundy, a notable artist leading Japan’s latest music scene! “saikai” filled with inspiration from reading the original manga, can be heard in the 2nd main trailer. The opening footage of the main story will start broadcasting and distributing from episode 2, so don’t miss it!
“saikai” by Vaundy
Music, lyrics and arranged by Vaundy
(SDR / Sony Music Labels)
- Comments from Vaundy
This time, I wrote down the opening theme song ” saikai ” for “The Summer Hikaru Died”. I made it into a song with the same uneasy feeling I got when reading the original manga, not knowing what would happen every time I turned the page. I hope it has become a song that challenges the music of anime in the future.
Who would you want to meet again if you had the chance?
- Vaundy Profile Information
A multi-talented 24 years old artist who handles all of his own lyrics, composition, and arrangement, as well as design, video direction, and self-production. He started posting songs on YouTube in the spring of 2019.
With catchy melodies like “Tokyo Flash” and “Fukakouryoku” and a wide range of genre songs, he quickly became a hot topic on SNS. He has been attracting attention as a symbolic figure of the “Reiwa” era in streaming music, with 17 songs exceeding 100 million plays, setting a record for the most by a Japanese male solo artist.
From February 2026, he will also be the youngest male solo artist in history to hold a tour in four major city domes (with an expected audience of about 300,000 in 6 live concerts).
With his natural voice that catches the ear and becomes addictive at first listen, and his wide-ranging song sense that suggests extraordinary talent, he is leading the Japan’s latest music scene.
- New Cast Comments Arrived!
Yuta Maki (CV: Yoshiki Nakajima)
Classmate of Yoshiki. A funster with a shaved head.
I’m Yoshiki Nakajima, and I’ll be voicing Yuta Maki.
Maki shakes up the mood of the story—in a good way! He uses all kinds of tricks (laughs).
In this “abnormal” world that clings to you like sweaty summer heat, doesn’t the “normal” daily life of Maki and Yuki offer a refreshing contrast?
Since the shocking first chapter of the manga, I’ve been drawn into this world.
I hope I can share that feeling with you soon.
Please look forward to the anime!
Yuki Tadokoro (CV: Shion Wakayama)
Classmate of Yoshiki. Childhood friend of Asako Yamagishi.
When I first read the manga, I was completely drawn into its unique atmosphere—how it captures the abnormal side of everyday summer life, quietly existing right next to the normal.
Even though the characters live like they’re walking a tightrope and have long left “normal” behind, that same unchanged normal life is still waiting for them at school.
I truly, truly love this world and its atmosphere.
I’ll do my very best to help bring that feeling to the anime.
- About “The Summer Hikaru Died”
A hit horror manga series about an ordinary high school boy, Yoshiki, who experiences various mysterious incidents in his life with Hikaru, a mysterious being who imitates his best friend Hikaru Indo. The story of “whatever it is” and the boy’s madness has garnered significant attention, making it a must-see anime film.
- Follow “The Summer Hikaru Died” for the latest news and announcements:
Official website: https://hikanatsu-anime.com/
Official X: https://x.com/hikaru_anime_en
- Introduction
In a certain village
Since their childhood, they have grown up together.
Yoshiki and Hikaru, childhood friends.
the sun shining down on them
the chirping sound of a crypto tympana facialis
Ice cream on the way home
Laughing over trivial things
One day in summer, no different from any other day
…… You’re not Hikaru after all, are you?
Half a year ago, Hikaru went missing in the mountains.
A week later, he came back on a whim.
The voice, the figure, the thing that looked like Hikaru
What was stirring inside…
“Hikaru is no longer with us. …… if that’s the case.”
Starting the days with “something” in the form of a friend,
The “same as usual” everyday life.
But at the same time…
Strange incidents begin to plague the village.
Falling into the unknown “something”
The curtain rises on a coming-of-age horror story.
- Key Visual
- Work Information
Original story: Based on the comic “The Summer Hikaru Died” by Mokumokuren, originally serialized in the YOUNG ACE UP published by KADOKAWA
Director/Series Composition: Ryohei Takeshita
Character Design/Chief Animation Director: Yuichi Takahashi
DORODORO Animator: Masanobu Hiraoka
Animation Production: CygamesPictures
Copyright: ©Mokumokuren/KADOKAWA/The Summer Hikaru Died Partners
Copyrights must be indicated when posting or using the image materials.
Original work information
Title: “The Summer Hikaru Died
Author: Mokumokuren
Previously published: Volumes 1-5 (Kadokawa Comics A)
Available on YenPress
https://yenpress.com/series/the-summer-hikaru-died
Zilliz Introduces Zero-Downtime Migration Services for Seamless Unstructured Data & Vector Embeddings Transfers
New solutions eliminate friction, enabling effortless portability of unstructured data and embeddings across systems — with no downtime, no vendor lock-in, and no added cost.
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., June 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Zilliz, creator of the world’s most widely adopted open-source vector database, Milvus, introduced a powerful new set of Migration Services designed to make moving unstructured data and vector embeddings between platforms fast, reliable, and cost-free. These solutions eliminate the technical and operational barriers that typically slow down AI data infrastructure modernization.
“Organizations working with unstructured data for AI applications face migration challenges that traditional ETL pipelines simply can’t solve,” said James Luan, VP of Engineering at Zilliz. “Our new tools provide the missing infrastructure layer — making it easy to migrate from Elasticsearch to Milvus, consolidate across multiple vector stores, or move to Zilliz Cloud with zero disruption.”
Breaking Down Migration Barriers for Unstructured Data
Unstructured data — including images, text, audio, and video — now accounts for over 90% of enterprise data. As organizations turn this data into vector embeddings, they run into major roadblocks:
- Format Variety: Unstructured data exists in diverse formats (JSON, CSV, Parquet, images, etc.), requiring specialized processing
- System Fragmentation: Business information is scattered across S3, HDFS, Kafka, data warehouses, and data lakes
- Vendor Lock-in Risks: Moving vector embeddings between databases often creates technical dependencies and potential vendor lock-in
- Complex Transformations: Converting unstructured data requires AI model integration for embedding generation and schema mapping
Two Flexible Options for Every Environment
Zilliz offers Migration Services that directly respond to these challenges through two complementary deployment options:
- Zilliz Migration Service provides a free, fully managed solution with zero configuration requirements and zero downtime. This service handles all aspects of migration while maintaining continuous synchronization between source and target systems.
- Vector Transport Service (VTS), available as open-source software, offers the same capabilities for organizations that require self-hosted deployments in secure or air-gapped environments.
Purpose-Built for AI and Vector Workloads
Both solutions deliver essential features specifically designed for unstructured data and vector embeddings:
- Zero-Downtime Migrations: Continuous synchronization keeps applications running seamlessly during transitions
- Broad Source Compatibility: Support for Elasticsearch, Pinecone, Qdrant, PostgreSQL, Milvus, and more
- Flexible Migration Modes: Options for one-time batch imports or real-time streaming synchronization
- Purpose-Built for Unstructured Data and Vector Embeddings: Specialized handling with schema mapping and transformations
- Enterprise-Grade Reliability: Designed for massive datasets with robust monitoring and alerting
Empowering Data Freedom Across Industries
Organizations across sectors are already using Zilliz Migration Services to transform their AI infrastructure:
- A global retailer migrated 200 million product embeddings from Elasticsearch to Zilliz Cloud, improving search accuracy by 40% while cutting infrastructure costs in half
- A healthcare organization moved patient data vectors between systems while maintaining strict HIPAA compliance
- A financial services provider eliminated vendor dependency by moving to an open-source foundation while maintaining continuous operation
“Migrating between platforms without rebuilding pipelines from scratch is a game-changer for our AI strategy,” said one customer. “What would have taken months of engineering was completed in days, allowing us to focus on innovation rather than infrastructure management.”
Availability
Zilliz’s new migration solutions are now generally available:
- Zilliz Migration Service: Available as a free, fully managed service within Zilliz Cloud
- Vector Transport Service: Available as open-source software under the Apache 2.0 license atgithub.com/zilliztech/vts
For more information about Zilliz Migration Services, visit zilliz.com/zilliz-migration-service or contact support.
About Zilliz
Zilliz is an American SaaS company that builds next-generation vector database technologies, helping organizations unlock the value of unstructured data and rapidly develop AI and machine learning applications. By simplifying complex data infrastructure, Zilliz brings the power of AI within reach for enterprises, teams, and individual developers alike. Zilliz offers a fully managed, multi-cloud vector database service powered by open-source Milvus, supporting major cloud platforms such as AWS, GCP, and Azure, and is available across more than 20 countries and regions.
Headquartered in Redwood Shores, California, Zilliz is backed by leading investors including Aramco’s Prosperity7 Ventures, Temasek’s Pavilion Capital, Hillhouse Capital, 5Y Capital, Yunqi Partners, Trustbridge Partners, and others.
Blokees Initial Release Minions Mokoo Series: Minions-N-Disguise, Becomes a Banana Day Hotspot
SHANGHAI, June 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — On June 1, 2025, the 2025 Minions Banana Day was officially launched in Shanghai and Beijing, marking the commencement of a five-month tour across six cities in China. The Chinese building block character toy brand Blokees made a special appearance at the event. At the flagship station in Shanghai, Blokees globally unveiled and simultaneously made available to purchase its latest Minions Mokoo Series: Minions-N-Disguise.
This series showcases six iconic Minions characters: King Bob, Soldier Stuart, Golf Tim, Knight Dave, Maid Phil, and Caveman Kevin. Their distinctive physical traits and classic appearances are meticulously replicated. Each figure features detachable outfits, interchangeable accessories, and 11 articulated joints, enabling engaging and realistic interaction. In addition, a hidden cute skeleton design serves as a surprising Easter egg, offering an unexpected delight to dedicated Minions fans.
Blokees has been actively promoting user innovation, further cultivating the innovative culture of the BFC (Blokees Figures Creator) brand, and encouraging users to become creators within the BFC ecosystem. In the Minions Banana Day exhibition area, Blokees has specifically established a dedicated display zone for BFC creations.
The Blokees booth attracted considerable attention and became a prominent destination for Minions enthusiasts. Attendees participated in photo sessions and group portraits while experiencing the innovative process of construction and transformation. The atmosphere was lively, characterized by laughter and enthusiasm. A dedicated Minions fan commented with excitement, “These Minions building blocks exhibit highly detailed and realistic designs, offering versatility through customizable outfits. The integration of a skeletal framework represents an ingenious and surprising feature, enhancing the product’s appeal significantly.”
The Minions Banana Day will continue until October 26, making stops in Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Wuhan, Changsha, and Shenyang. Throughout the tour, Blokees will introduce additional Minions-themed releases and interactive activities.
With a portfolio encompassing over 500 patents, Blokees remains at the forefront of innovation. Through its “All Ages, All Price Points, Global Reach” strategy, Blokees is progressively propelling Chinese brick-based character toys onto the global stage.
AI linked to a fourfold increase in productivity growth and 56% wage premium, while jobs grow even in the most easily automated roles: PwC 2025 Global AI Jobs Barometer
- Workers see rising wages: AI-skilled workers see average 56% wage premium in 2024, double the 25% in the previous year
- Confounding expectations, data shows job availability grew 38% in the roles more exposed to AI, albeit below the growth rate in less exposed occupations
- Industries most exposed to AI saw 3x higher growth in revenue per employee (27%) compared to those least exposed (9%)
- The skills sought by employers are changing 66% faster in jobs most exposed to AI
LONDON, June 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — AI is making workers more valuable, productive, and able to command higher wage premiums, with job numbers rising even in roles considered most automatable, according to PwC’s 2025 Global AI Jobs Barometer, released today. The report is based on analysis of close to a billion job ads from six continents.
The report finds that since GenAI’s proliferation in 2022, productivity growth has nearly quadrupled in industries most exposed to AI (e.g. financial services, software publishing), rising from 7% from 2018-2022 to 27% from 2018-2024. In contrast, the rate of productivity growth in industries least exposed to AI (e.g. mining, hospitality) declined from 10% to 9% over the same period.
2024 data shows that the most AI exposed industries are now seeing 3x higher growth in revenue per employee than the least exposed.
Carol Stubbings, Global Chief Commercial Officer, PwC, said:
“This research shows that the power of AI to deliver for businesses is already being realised. And we are only at the start of the transition. As we roll out Agentic AI at enterprise scale, we are seeing that the right combination of technology and culture can create dramatic new opportunities to reimagine how organisations work and create value.”
Job numbers are rising in virtually every type of AI-exposed occupation, even those highly automatable
Contrary to some expectations, the data from the report does not show job or wage destruction from AI.
While occupations with lower exposure to AI saw strong job growth (65%) in recent years (2019-2024), growth remained robust even in more exposed occupations (38%). Within more exposed occupations, jobs can be further divided into ‘automated’ (i.e., the job contains some tasks that AI can carry out) and ‘augmented’ (i.e., where AI helps a human do their job better). Across both classifications between 2019-24, job numbers are growing in every industry analysed, although augmented jobs are generally growing faster.
Wages are growing twice as fast in AI-exposed industries
Wages are growing twice as fast in industries more exposed to AI versus less exposed, with wages rising in both automatable and augmentable jobs.
Jobs which require AI skills also offer a wage premium (over similar roles that don’t require AI skills) in every industry analysed, with the average premium hitting 56%, up from 25% last year. Jobs that require such AI skills also continue to grow faster than all jobs – rising 7.5% from last year, even as total job postings fell 11.3%.
Joe Atkinson, Global Chief AI Officer, PwC, said:
“In contrast to worries that AI could cause sharp reductions in the number of jobs available – this year’s findings show jobs are growing in virtually every type of AI-exposed occupation, including highly automatable ones. AI is amplifying and democratizing expertise, enabling employees to multiply their impact and focus on higher-level responsibilities. With the right foundations, both companies and workers can re-define their roles and industries and emerge leaders in their field, particularly as the full gambit of applications becomes clearer.”
The skills earthquake accelerates – AI is creating deep change in the skills workers need to succeed
While the picture on productivity, wages and jobs is broadly positive, the research does highlight the need for workers and businesses to adapt to a much faster pace of change. The skills sought by employers are changing 66% faster in occupations most exposed to AI, up from 25% last year.
What it takes to succeed in AI-exposed jobs is changing in other ways. Employer demand for formal degrees is declining for all jobs, but especially quickly for AI-exposed jobs. The percentage of jobs AI augments that require a degree fell 7 percentage points between 2019 and 2024 from 66% to 59%, and 9 percentage points (53% to 44%) for jobs AI automates.
The findings show that AI’s impact on women and men may be unequal – in every country analysed, more women than men are in AI-exposed roles, suggesting the skills pressure facing women will be higher.
Pete Brown, Global Workforce Leader, PwC, said:
“AI’s rapid advance is not just re-shaping industries, but fundamentally altering the workforce and the skills required. This is not a situation that employers can easily buy their way out of. Even if they can pay the premium required to attract talent with AI skills, those skills can quickly become out of date without investment in the systems to help the workforce learn.”
The AI business imperative
If businesses are to turbocharge their growth and leverage the opportunity afforded by AI, they must put AI front-and-centre, now. The report recommends five key actions for businesses:
- Use AI for enterprise-wide transformation.
- Treat AI as a growth strategy, not just an efficiency strategy.
- Prioritise Agentic AI.
- Enable your workforce to have the skills to make the most of AI’s power.
- Unlock AI’s transformative potential by building trust.
About the PwC 2025 Global AI Jobs Barometer
The AI Jobs Barometer analysed close to a billion job ads and thousands of company financial reports across six continents to reveal AI’s impact on jobs, wages, skills, and productivity. The Barometer includes some of the most recent available data on AI’s impact including the latest available job ads and company reports through the end of 2024. We define a job as ‘AI-exposed’ if it contains many tasks in which AI can be used according to the well-established AI Occupational Exposure index. Definitions: ‘More exposed’ jobs are the 50% of jobs with greater AI exposure; ‘Less exposed’ jobs are the 50% of jobs with lower AI exposure; ‘Most exposed’ jobs are the 25% of jobs with the greatest AI exposure. We use the IMF’s methodology to separately analyse AI-exposed jobs that are highly automatable (which means the job contains many tasks AI can perform) versus jobs that are highly augmentable (which means the job contains many tasks in which AI supports human expertise and judgment). You can read the full report and learn more about the key takeaways for business at www.pwc.com/aijobsbarometer
About PwC
At PwC, we help clients build trust and reinvent so they can turn complexity into competitive advantage. We’re a tech-forward, people-empowered network with more than 370,000 people in 149 countries. Across audit and assurance, tax and legal, deals and consulting we help build, accelerate and sustain momentum. Find out more at www.pwc.com
Experimental Drug Development Centre Announces the Presentation of Updated Data from the Phase 1 Study of Antibody-Drug Conjugate EBC-129 at the 2025 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)
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- EBC-129 is an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) that selectively targets a novel, tumour-specific N-glycosylated epitope found on both CEACAM5 and CEACAM6.
- The expansion cohort for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) in the ongoing Phase 1 trial has completed enrolment. Notably, 82% of patients had tumours expressing the antigen at levels considered treatable with EBC-129.
- EBC-129 demonstrated positive overall response rates and prolonged progression-free survival in PDAC patients that have been heavily pre-treated, including those that have received prior treatment with standard of care (SoC) typically containing taxanes.
- The US FDA also recently granted Fast Track Designation for EBC-129 in the treatment of PDAC patients.
SINGAPORE, June 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The Experimental Drug Development Centre (EDDC), Singapore’s national platform for drug discovery and development, has announced the presentation of updated clinical data for the ongoing Phase 1 trial for EBC-129 at the 2025 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago.
EBC-129 is a first-in-class antibody drug conjugate (ADC) targeting a novel, tumour-specific N256-glycosylated epitope on CEACAM5 and CEACAM6. The updated findings showed promising efficacy data from 21 heavily pre-treated pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patients across the dose escalation and the dose expansion portions of the Phase 1 study. Patients received EBC-129 at doses between 1.8 and 2.2 mg/kg, given once every 3 weeks. 17 out of 21 patients (81%) of the patients had received prior treatment with taxanes. 82% of patients had tumours which expressed the EBC-129 antigen at ≥1% at 3+ intensity and were therefore considered treatable. The overall response rates (ORRs) were 25% and 20%, with disease control rates (DCRs) of 87.5% and 63.6% and progression-free survival (PFS) of 19 and 12 weeks for 1.8 mg/kg and 2.2 mg/kg, respectively.
“Pancreatic adenocarcinoma remains one of the most challenging cancers to treat, particularly in the metastatic setting where resistance to standard therapies is common. The clinical signals observed with EBC-129 in refractory pancreatic adenocarcinoma, including tolerability, prolonged disease control and a confirmed response in a heavily pre-treated patient, are encouraging and clinically meaningful. Continued prioritisation of biology-guided trials targeting EBC-129 will be key to sustaining momentum in this important therapeutic effort,” said Assistant Professor Robert W. Lentz, MD, Division of Medical Oncology, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine.
This presentation follows the recent Fast Track Designation granted by the U.S. FDA for EBC-129 in the treatment of PDAC patients. This designation supports EDDC’s efforts to accelerate the advancement of the programme through increased regulatory engagement and the potential for expedited review pathways.
Other Results to Date
The dose escalation study of the Phase 1 trial was open to all patients, while the ongoing dose expansion study comprises of three cohorts in PDAC, gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma (GEA) and tumour-agnostic patients with other immunohistochemistry (IHC)-positive solid tumours. Recruitment for the GEA and IHC-positive cohorts is still ongoing.
EBC-129 showed a manageable safety profile in the 58 patients treated so far, with uncomplicated neutropenia and infusion-related reactions as the main treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) observed.
The EBC-129 antigen was also found to be highly expressed, with 52% to 100% of tumour tissues assessed during the trial showing moderate to high expression levels of ≥20% at 2+ and/or 3+. This included samples from gastroesophageal, appendiceal, colorectal and lung cancer patients, making EBC-129 a potentially viable treatment option for these cancers.
“We have seen encouraging signs of efficacy of EBC-129 as a single-agent therapy, even in heavily pre-treated patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. This, combined with the observed safety profile, underscores the promise of EBC-129 as a possible treatment option for PDAC patients. As a first-in-class ADC that targets both CEACAM5 and CEACAM6, EBC-129 has also shown potential against a range of other solid tumours, and we look forward to expanding clinical evaluations with the ongoing dose expansion cohorts and accelerating the development of EBC-129 to address critical unmet needs in cancer,” said Professor Damian O’Connell, CEO of EDDC.
About EBC-129
EBC-129 is an ADC that targets a tumour-specific N256-glycosylation site conserved on CEACAM5 and CEACAM6. CEACAM5 and CEACAM6 are known to have functional importance in tumour formation, migration and metastasis. In the ongoing trial, the tumour-specific marker is found to be widely expressed in multiple solid tumour types, including gastric, oesophageal, pancreatic, lung, colorectal, and appendiceal cancers, based on an analytically validated immunohistochemistry (IHC) assay. The payload used in EBC-129 is monomethyl auristatin E (MMAE), which has been extensively tested and approved for clinical use in other marketed ADCs, and has demonstrated synergy with PD-1 inhibitors. The ongoing Phase 1 trial of EBC-129 is assessing the safety and tolerability of EBC-129 as a single agent and in combination with pembrolizumab in patients with advanced solid tumours. Enrolment for the PDAC cohort in the Phase 1 dose expansion study is now complete, while recruitment continues for the gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma (GEA) and IHC-positive cohorts.
For information about the trial, please visit Clinicaltrial.gov, trial identifier NCT05701527.
About the Experimental Drug Development Centre
The Experimental Drug Development Centre (EDDC) is Singapore’s national platform for drug discovery and development, formed from the integration of the Experimental Therapeutics Centre (ETC), Drug Discovery and Development (D3), and Experimental Biotherapeutics Centre (EBC) in 2019. EDDC aims to develop therapeutics and diagnostics that save and improve the lives of patients in Singapore, Asia and around the world. Hosted by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), EDDC works collaboratively with public sector and industry partners to translate the great science arising from Singapore’s biomedical and clinical sciences R&D into innovative healthcare solutions. For more information about EDDC, please visit www.eddc.sg.