Morphotek®, Inc., a subsidiary of Eisai Inc., today announced that a monoclonal antibody has been selected for advancement to clinical development under the terms of its March 2009 collaboration agreement with Human Genome Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: HGSI). Under the agreement, the parties collaborate in the discovery, development and commercialization of antibodies that target certain antigens discovered by HGS. The collaborative work is focused on therapeutic monoclonal antibodies for the fields of immunology and oncology.
“Our agreement with HGS is a continuation of our business model of leveraging access to targets from collaborators, applying Morphotek's technologies to develop lead antibodies and, through collaboration with our partners, validating their therapeutic potential in preclinical and, if warranted, clinical studies.”
The humanized antibody, which is being evaluated in the field of immunology, was generated and optimized by Morphotek using its proprietary technologies and the parties will work together to further develop and commercialize the antibody under the collaboration agreement. Each party also has the right to opt in to participate in development and commercialization of any other antibody candidate selected for advancement under the agreement.
"We are excited to bring forward the first therapeutic monoclonal antibody from our collaboration with Human Genome Sciences," said Nicholas Nicolaides, Ph.D., President and CEO of Morphotek. "Our agreement with HGS is a continuation of our business model of leveraging access to targets from collaborators, applying Morphotek's technologies to develop lead antibodies and, through collaboration with our partners, validating their therapeutic potential in preclinical and, if warranted, clinical studies."
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