Joint effort will exploit Theraclone’s I-START technology platform.
Theraclone Sciences and Zenyaku Kog yo boarded the flu therapy bandwagon with the signing of an R&D agreement focused on the search for broadly protective mAbs against pandemic and severe seasonal influenza strains.
Under terms of the deal, Zenyaku retains the option for exclusive rights to resulting antibodies in Asia including certain Oceania countries. The company will also have an option in these regions to potential vaccine candidates originating from the collaboration.
The partnership will exploit Theraclone’s I-STAR™ platform to hunt for antibodies. Based on the interrogation of memory B-cell archives, the technology has been developed to allow the rapid functional testing of thousands of natural human antibodies to find those with the best biological activity, the firms report
Theraclone’s s antibody discovery programs are currently focused on infectious diseases including flu, HIV, and HCMV as well as inflammatory disorders.
