Bayer and Asklepios BioPharmaceutical (AskBio) have established a strategic collaboration with Belief BioMed (BBM) to explore the potential for new gene therapies.
AskBio, which has its global headquarters in North Carolina, US and its European headquarters in Edinburgh, UK, is a gene therapy company which is wholly owned and independently operated as a subsidiary of Bayer. BBM, based in Shanghai, China, integrates research and development, manufacturing and clinical application of investigational gene therapy products using viral vector technology. BBM has developed a number of novel engineered adeno-associated virus vectors, which have shown reduced immunogenicity and robust transduction efficiency in human, and non-human trials, respectively. It has also established a commercial production platform for gene therapy drugs in China.
In July, BBM announced that the new drug application for its core product for hemophilia B was accepted by China National Medical Products Administration, making this the first new drug application submitted in China for a gene therapy product proposed for an inborn genetic disease.
Mansuo Shannon, chief scientific officer at AskBio said: "The potential of BBM’s next-generation capsid technology, together with the work we are conducting at AskBio, is promising."
Under the terms of the contract the partners will collaborate to investigate potential therapies in diseases that may be treatable using a liver-targeted approach. "Gene therapy has some of the greatest potential in modern medicine, particularly from a technical perspective," said Juergen Eckhardt, head of business development and licensing at Bayer Pharmaceuticals. “One path success lies in collaborations such as this and in bringing together experts.”
AskBio maintains a portfolio of clinical programmes across a range of neuromuscular, central nervous system, cardiovascular, and metabolic disease indications with a clinical-stage pipeline that includes investigational therapeutics for a number of conditions including congestive heart failure, Parkinson’s disease and Pompe disease.
Further reading:
Visit Blog