SIMCERE PHARMA (02096) announced that its group subsidiary has entered into an overseas license option agreement with an affiliate of AbbVie Inc. for the investigational new drug candidate SIM0500. Under the terms of the agreement, the group will receive an upfront payment from AbbVie, along with potential option fees and milestone payments that could total up to $1.055 billion, in addition to tiered royalties on net sales. The company's board of directors is pleased to announce that, following the initial upfront payment previously received under this agreement, the group has recently received an additional payment of $40 million from AbbVie. This payment reflects the positive progress in the clinical development collaboration for SIM0500 between the group and AbbVie. SIM0500 is a humanized GPRC5D-BCMA-CD3 trispecific antibody developed by the group using its proprietary T-cell engager multispecific antibody technology platform. This molecule combines a low-affinity, high-targeting-initiation CD3 antibody with two anti-tumor-associated antibodies targeting G Protein-Coupled Receptor Class C Group 5 Member D (GPRC5D) and B-cell Maturation Antigen (BCMA). Through multiple anti-tumor mechanisms, SIM0500 has demonstrated potent T-cell cytotoxic effects against multiple myeloma (MM) cells.