Pairing a T-cell co-stimulatory brake with an inflammatory workhorse is an audacious idea. A handful of new readouts—plus a quietly advancing early-stage programme—suggest the race to make “combo-power” biologics work in skin disease has begun.
Dermatology has a habit of progressing in waves. A decade ago, IL-17 transformed psoriasis; in atopic dermatitis (AD), IL-4/13 blockade re-set expectations; and in hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), TNF and now IL-17 opened a path for responders. The next wave may come from bispecific antibodies—single molecules that hit two validated pathways at once. The most provocative entrant targets OX40L (a T-cell co-stimulatory ligand) and TNF-α (the classic inflammatory cytokine),
