Truffle Capital creates therapeutic vaccines developer Abivax
Follows merger of three French biotechs and builds on tie-up with Cuban Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology
Truffle Capital has created a new biopharmaceutical company called Abivax to develop therapeutic vaccines and anti-viral drugs to combat infectious and malignant diseases.
The French venture capital firm is collaborating with the Cuban Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) in the first start-up Euro-Cuban R&D collaboration.
Paris-based Abivax has been formed by merging the technologies and the product portfolios of three French biotech companies financed by Truffle Capital (Wittycell, Splicos and Zophis). An exclusive partnership agreement with the CIGB has been approved by the Cuban government and will further enrich the portfolio.
The CIGB is the largest among the dozen or so subsidiaries under BioCubaFarma that specialise in the discovery, development and production of vaccines and antivirals. Meanwhile, the newly founded Abivax already possesses several key assets, including complementary technology platforms, a high-value product portfolio and an experienced management team.
'At Truffle Capital, we are proud to have founded Abivax after two years of discussion with Cuba, which is known for its excellent physicians and high-quality vaccines,' said Philippe Pouletty, Founder and Chairman of Abivax.
This project is intended to place France and Cuba at the forefront of progress in the field of therapeutic vaccines
'Abivax is the first biopharma company to have established a major collaboration with Cuba. This is an international project that is intended to place France and Cuba at the forefront of progress in the field of therapeutic vaccines.'
Abivax's CEO is Hartmut Ehrlich, formerly head of R&D at Baxter BioScience. He said Cuba's expertise in vaccines is acknowledged worldwide and the firm's objective is to be one of the few global leaders in therapeutic vaccines.
'By targeting large unmet medical needs, we are seeking to develop innovative vaccines and antiviral drugs that are safe and efficacious, and can be accessed by as many patients as possible worldwide,' he added.
Abivax's portfolio includes a therapeutic vaccine for chronic hepatitis B from CIGB and Wittycell; a novel anti-viral drug for AIDS from Splicos; an anti-HPV therapeutic vaccine to treat, without surgery, uterine cervix dysplasia and prevent the emergence of cancer from Wittycell; in addition to a novel adjuvant to boost NKT and B cell response from Wittycell.
