Abbvie’s Relentless Drive to Discover Promising New Immunology Pathways is Inspired and Guided by Those Whose Lives are Touched by Immune-Mediated Diseases

“We target specific difficult-to-cure diseases where we can leverage our core R&D expertise to advance science.”

The global pharmaceuticals industry is integral to modern medicine and healthcare. From conducting research on various life-threatening diseases to compiling data about public health, pharmaceuticals make up an industry that is valued at a few hundred billion dollars. Numerous pharmaceutical corporations pour hundreds of millions of dollars in research each year.

Abbvie is one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical research organizations. Its employees consist of about 30,000 employees are scientists, researchers, communicators, manufacturing specialists and regulatory experts located around the globe. Abbvie comes up with new approaches to addressing today’s health issues—from life-threatening illness to chronic conditions. The company targets specific difficult-to-cure diseases where it can leverage its core R&D expertise to advance science. The team at Abbvie is constantly working to create solutions that go beyond treating the illness to have a positive impact on patients’ lives, on societies—and on science itself.

Abbvie is driven by a compassion for people, commitment to innovation and inclusion, service to the community, and uncompromising integrity at the heart of everything it does.

Here are Abbvie’s areas of expertise:

Immunology

The company’s relentless drive to discover promising new immunology pathways and targets is inspired and guided by those whose lives are touched by immune-mediated diseases. Its current successes motivate us to continue that exploration, strengthening its resolve as it strives to impact their disease and their evolving expectations for a life better-lived.

AbbVie has 8,000+ research and development team members at the forefront of discovering, developing and delivering therapies to solve unmet patient needs. The company’s innovation and expertise are powered by leading scientists, whose work continues to pave the way for new generations of researchers – and we all share the goal of identifying therapeutic approaches that have remarkable impacts for patients everywhere.

Antibody Drug Conjugates (ADCs)

This technology platform uses the targeting of an antibody to deliver a therapeutic agent. ADC technology is more traditionally used in Oncology; however, by coupling a highly potent immunomodulator to an anti-inflammatory monoclonal antibody, it can be delivered to dysregulated immune cells with the goal to turn down inflammation, restore normal immune function and spare normal tissue. By combining AbbVie’s expertise in discovering and developing specific monoclonal antibodies with its experience in small molecule chemistry – AbbVie is leading the field in applying ADC technology to immune-mediated diseases.

Oncology

AbbVie scientists combine deep biologic knowledge with cutting-edge research technology to advance cancer care.

Immuno-Oncology

• Relies on the immune response and the immunologic memory.
• The immunologic memory is a distinct characteristic of the immune system. It allows our immune systems to quickly and specifically recognize an antigen that our bodies have previously encountered.
• There are two types of immune responses, the innate and the adaptive.
• The innate response is an antigen-independent response that is immediate and has no immunologic memory.
• The adaptive response is an antigen-dependent and antigen-specific response with the capacity for immunologic memory.

B-Cell Signaling

Interfering with the communication signals of malignant B cells is a potential strategy for treating some types of cancer.

• AbbVie is a leader in the research of Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK), a key enzyme in the B cell receptor signaling complex that plays an important role in the survival and expansion of malignant B cells.¹
• AbbVie is researching other B cell signaling pathways.

Regulated Cell Death - Apoptosis

Apoptosis is a form of regulated cell death, a natural process that eliminates damaged, unneeded or dangerous cells from the body. Through a deep knowledge of apoptosis and the role impaired apoptosis can play in the proliferation of cancer cells, Abbvie is advancing novel cancer research.  

• A highly controlled process for eliminating unneeded or damaged cells in response to developmental cues, cellular stress, or injury. 
• A way that homeostasis is regulated and maintained in adult tissues.
• Instrumental in safeguarding the integrity of the genome in response to severe DNA damage

Neuroscience

Abbvie is advancing research across several neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease.

Alzheimer’s disease

As the number of patients and caregivers seeking help from the health care system increases, Alzheimer’s represents a growing challenge for society. Current treatments simply address the symptoms and do nothing to prevent the progression of the disease or reverse the damage. Abbvie is collaborating with the world’s leading Alzheimer’s researchers to identify ways of stopping the disease in its earliest stages. Its anti-tau antibody is being investigated to treat Alzheimer’s disease and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and is advancing to phase 2 developments.

Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis, or MS, is a progressive chronic disorder of the nervous system that is most often seen in patients between the ages of 20 and 40. In MS, the immune system attacks a protein called myelin, which forms a protective sheet around neurofibers. When myelin is damaged by MS, neurons struggle to communicate, leading to an accumulation of neuronal loss, atrophy and significant disability over time. Abbvie is committed to meeting the needs of patients with MS, and it is currently supporting treatment options that promote nerve protection and facilitate neuronal regeneration.

Parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease is the second most-common neurodegenerative disorder, affecting more than 10 million people worldwide. In addition to its therapy for advanced Parkinson’s, Abbvie is currently exploring other pathways that could provide patients with a new method of treatment for this progressive chronic disease. It is also developing a new delivery system to enhance the patient and caregiver experience while administering its existing therapy for Parkinson’s disease.

 “We’re a company that takes on the toughest health challenges.”