AbCellera and Empirico Expand Strategic Multi-Target Antibody Discovery Collaboration
May 03 2022 - 9:00AM
Business Wire
Collaboration expanded from five to seven
targets and provides AbCellera the option to co-develop therapeutic
programs in partnership with Empirico
AbCellera (Nasdaq: ABCL) and Empirico Inc. (“Empirico”)
announced today that they have expanded their strategic
multi-target discovery collaboration, which leverages Empirico’s
Precision Insights PlatformTM to discover genetically validated
drug targets and AbCellera’s technology to identify lead candidate
antibodies against those targets. Following the rapid progress of
their first collaborative program, which identified a lead
candidate against an undisclosed G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR)
target in less than 12 months, the companies have expanded their
partnership to include seven targets. In addition, under the
expanded agreement, AbCellera has a co-development option on a
program-by-program basis.
Empirico’s platform is designed to uncover causal relationships
between genes, proteins, and clinical outcomes by integrating
genetic data and health information from millions of individuals
together with experimental validation. AbCellera integrates leading
technologies to solve all steps in the antibody discovery process
and delivers to partners diverse and developable lead candidates
against drug targets.
“We have been impressed by Empirico’s ability to discover and
validate new drug targets and believe the combination of our
respective technologies has great potential to bring new
first-in-class treatments to patients,” said Carl Hansen, Ph.D.,
CEO and President of AbCellera. “We are pleased to build on our
productive collaboration with Empirico by expanding the number of
targets and maximizing the opportunity for mutual success by having
an option to co-invest on a program-by-program basis.”
“AbCellera’s technology enables us to extend our competitive
advantage in target discovery and validation with best-in-class
antibodies to rapidly advance our programs towards the clinic,”
said Omri Gottesman, M.D., CEO and President of Empirico. “We are
excited to expand our relationship with AbCellera and to translate
many more genetically validated targets into potential new
antibody-based therapies together.”
Under the terms of the expanded agreement, Empirico will have
the right to develop and commercialize therapeutic antibodies
resulting from the collaboration, and AbCellera has the option to
co-develop each therapeutic program to maintain up to a 50 percent
ownership stake. Financial terms were not disclosed.
About Empirico Inc. Empirico is a next-generation
therapeutics company founded on utilizing human genetics, data
science, and programmable biology to power novel target discovery
and development. Empirico’s Precision Insights PlatformTM, a
proprietary human genetics-focused discovery platform, leverages a
world-leading dataset, hyperscale infrastructure and algorithmic
approaches that encode and enhance human intuition to identify and
prioritize therapeutic targets. All potential therapeutic targets
are subjected to rigorous in vitro and in vivo experimental
validation to elucidate the mechanism by which genetic variation
impacts disease risk and provide insights about which therapeutic
modality could be ‘programmed’ to mimic or interfere with that
mechanism. Empirico is advancing multiple programs across a broad
range of indications and therapeutic modalities, both independently
and in collaboration with industry partners. Empirico is
headquartered in San Diego, California with laboratories in
Madison, Wisconsin. To learn more about Empirico, visit
www.empiricotx.com.
About AbCellera Biologics Inc. AbCellera is a technology
company that searches, decodes, and analyzes natural immune systems
to find antibodies that its partners can develop into drugs to
prevent and treat disease. AbCellera partners with drug developers
of all sizes, from large pharmaceutical to small biotechnology
companies, empowering them to move quickly, reduce cost, and tackle
the toughest problems in drug development. For more information,
please visit www.abcellera.com.
AbCellera Forward-looking Statements This press release
contains forward-looking statements, including statements made
pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward-looking statements are
based on management’s current beliefs and assumptions and on
information currently available to management. All statements
contained in this release other than statements of historical fact
are forward-looking statements, including statements regarding our
ability to develop, commercialize and achieve market acceptance of
our current and planned products and services, our research and
development efforts, and other matters regarding our business
strategies, use of capital, results of operations and financial
position, and plans and objectives for future operations.
In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by
the words “may,” “will,” “could,” “would,” “should,” “expect,”
“intend,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,”
“project,” “potential,” “continue,” “ongoing” or the negative of
these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all
forward-looking statements contain these words. These statements
involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause
actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to
be materially different from the information expressed or implied
by these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and
other factors are described under "Risk Factors," "Management's
Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations" and elsewhere in the documents we file with the
Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. We caution
you that forward-looking statements are based on a combination of
facts and factors currently known by us and our projections of the
future, about which we cannot be certain. As a result, the
forward-looking statements may not prove to be accurate. The
forward-looking statements in this press release represent our
views as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to update
any forward-looking statements for any reason, except as required
by law.
Source: AbCellera Biologics Inc.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220429005732/en/
AbCellera Media: Jessica Yingling, Ph.D.;
media@abcellera.com, +1(236)521-6774 Business Development: Neil
Berkley; bd@abcellera.com, +1(604)559-9005 Investor Relations:
Melanie Solomon; ir@abcellera.com, +1(778)729-9116
Empirico Media: Jessica Yingling Ph.D.;
media@empiricotx.com, +1(858) 344-8091 Business Development: Andy
Spencer Ph.D.; bd@empiricotx.com
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