SHANGHAI, China and SINGAPORE, Jan. 05, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Shanghai Junshi Biociences Co., Ltd (“Junshi Biosciences”, HKEX: 1877, SSE: 688180), a leading innovation-driven biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development, and commercialization of novel therapies, and DotBio Pte. Ltd (“DotBio”), a biotech company specialized in next generation antibody therapies, announced today that they have entered into a collaboration to develop next-generation antibody therapies. Junshi Biosciences will obtain the license to one of DotBio’s DotBody modules, to be used within the oncology field for the development of several multi-specific antibodies. DotBio will be entitled to upfront and milestone payments, as well as royalties as the molecules progress through clinical development, regulatory approvals, and commercialization.

DotBio’s proprietary DotBody technology platform is based on the concept of modular design. By prefabricating antibody modules with specific functions, DotBio is able to combine them on demand to build multi-functional antibodies quickly and efficiently, improving antibody quality, development success rate and efficiency. This high throughput process allows DotBio to generate multi-specific antibodies, ADCs and intracellular antibodies in a matter of months as opposed to over a year. The DotBody platform has been optimized for autonomous folding, better stability, high expression levels, high concentration and low aggregation. The DotBody module licensed by Junshi Biosciences benefits from these improved properties and modularity and is an ideal building block to developing novel and high-quality treatment options.

Dr. Hui Feng, COO of Junshi Biosciences, said, “As a leading China-based, innovation-driven global biopharma company, Junshi Biosciences has established an impressive pipeline through internal R&D as well as external collaborations. Nevertheless, we constantly search for complementary novel drug targets and technology platforms that can further our goal of delivering novel therapies to patients in China and beyond and to achieve this goal by the most efficient means. DotBio’s technology platform provides a revolutionary approach to produce antibodies with high efficiency and quality. We anticipate our partnership with DotBio would provide patients with better treatment solutions in the near future.”

Dr. Ignacio Asial, CEO and founder of DotBio, said, “DotBio believes that the creation of multi-functional antibody molecules through a modular design opens unprecedented possibilities for the development of more effective therapies that can reach patients faster.  This licensing deal with Junshi Biosciences, a company with a strong track record in the R&D of immuno-oncology therapies, is an important milestone in our efforts to validate our vision and improve patients’ lives in a meaningful way. We are very excited about this first out-licensing deal with Junshi Biosciences and look forward to seeing the module progress into clinical development as part of several innovative multi-specific cancer therapies.”

About Junshi Biosciences

Founded in December 2012, Junshi Biosciences (HKEX: 1877; SSE: 688180) is an innovation-driven biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative therapeutics. The company has established a diversified R&D pipeline comprising 45 drug candidates, with five therapeutic focus areas covering cancer, autoimmune, metabolic, neurological, and infectious diseases. Junshi Biosciences was the first Chinese pharmaceutical company that obtained marketing approval for anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody in China. Its first-in-human anti-BTLA antibody for solid tumors was the first in the world to be approved for clinical trials by the FDA and NMPA and its anti-PCSK9 monoclonal antibody was the first in China to be approved for clinical trials by the NMPA. In early 2020, Junshi Biosciences joined forces with the Institute of Microbiology of Chinese Academy of Science and Eli Lilly to co-develop JS016 (etesevimab), China’s first neutralizing fully human monoclonal antibody against SARS-CoV-2. JS016 administered with bamlanivimab has been granted Emergency Use Authorizations (EUA) in over 15 countries and regions worldwide. The JS016 program is a part of our continuous innovation for disease control and prevention of the global pandemic. Junshi Biosciences has over 2,500 employees in the United States (San Francisco and Maryland) and China (Shanghai, Suzhou, Beijing and Guangzhou).

For more information about Junshi Biosciences, please visit: http://junshipharma.com.

About DotBio Pte. Ltd.

DotBio is a highly innovative biopharmaceutical company with a mission to harness next-generation antibody technologies to bring more effective therapies to patients. DotBio takes an innovative therapeutic approach towards the ideal treatment: the rapid prototyping of multi-functional antibodies to identify molecules with synergistic activity combinations, optimal architectures and unique mechanisms of action. DotBio's approach involves the use of its modular DotBody technology platform, its CoFi and Hot-CoFi stabilization technologies, high-throughput miniaturized assays and data analytics to generate unique therapeutic molecules that target both extracellular and intracellular disease drivers. DotBio is a platform company with a growing portfolio of assets, including numerous target-specific DotBody modules, as well as numerous preclinical assets in the immuno-oncology field.

For more information about DotBio, please visit: www.dotbio.com.

Junshi Biosciences Contact Information

IR Team:
Junshi Biosciences
info@junshipharma.com
+ 86 021-2250 0300

Goby Global
Bob Ai
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+ 1 646-389-6658

PR Team:
Junshi Biosciences
Zhi Li
zhi_li@junshipharma.com
+ 86 021-6105 8800