Medical research charity MRC Technology has licensed an antibody to China-based drug development process solutions provider Newsummit Biopharma. This antibody is for development of a novel therapeutic for treatment of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.
The antibody originated in the laboratory of Prof. Arvind Patel, of the MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research (CVR). Iy was humanised by MRC Technology scientists.
HCV is a major cause of chronic liver disease. It is estimated that approximately 200 million people globally are infected with this virus, of which 25% live in China.
We aim to quickly tackle one of China’s major public health issues.
Current worldwide projections estimate that HCV will be a major source of morbidity and mortality before the end of this decade. Although new promising treatments are now becoming available, there is as yet no vaccine and there is an unmet need to develop new targets for a broad and more effective therapy.
MRC Technology’s proprietary antibody humanisation technique and expertise has helped to bring several humanised antibody drugs to the market, including Keytruda, Tysabri and Actemra.
Jun Ren, Chief Executive Officer of Newsummit Biopharma, said: “With this license agreement, we aim to quickly tackle one of China’s major public health issues, as well as provide patients from Asia and the West with a valuable therapeutic option against HCV.”
