AbbVie Initiates COVID-19 Antibody Trials in US and Europe with License from Utrecht University and Harbour BioMed
International innovators in the Dutch life sciences & health sector develop solutions for COVID-19 pandemic
China and US-based Harbour BioMed (HBM) and Utrecht University have licensed their fully human, SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibody – 47D11 and its program – to US-based biopharmaceutical company AbbVie. The product (ABBV-47D11) is designed to prevent and treat COVID-19, along with related coronaviruses. AbbVie has initiated a Phase I clinical trial of the antibody, and it will conduct the initial clinical program in the United States before expanding it into Europe.
The antibody trials represent a convergence of international innovators in the Dutch life sciences & health sector. Harbour BioMed has a deep connection with the Netherlands, using the city of Rotterdam as a global gateway for R&D and cooperation to find solutions for COVID-19 and other diseases. Abbvie, a global leader in developing innovative antiviral therapies, has several branches in the Netherlands.
“The rapid progress we have made to date is a credit to the outstanding research by our teams and university partners, the strength of HBM’s fully human antibody discovery platform and AbbVie’s world leading expertise in antibody and antiviral drug development,” said Dr. Jingsong Wang, Principal Founder, Executive Director, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of HBM.
“With the clinical program at AbbVie now underway, we are in a position to contribute a new therapeutic option to address this pandemic,” Wang added.
Promising results from research collaboration in Dutch life sciences & health ecosystem
In June of this year, AbbVie announced its collaboration with Harbour BioMed, Utrecht University and Erasmus University Medical Center to advance the 47D11 antibody, which targets the conserved domain of the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2. The collaboration affirms Utrecht University’s reputation as one of Europe’s leading research universities, recognized internationally for its high-quality, innovative approach to research and teaching.
To date, the collaboration’s pre-clinical work strongly suggests this antibody can address the ongoing pandemic, including a wide range of potential escape mutants. If AbbVie’s clinical trials are successful, the company will manufacture and commercialize the product worldwide.
Although Erasmus Medical Center was involved in the fundamental science, it is not involved in the license agreement to test the antibody.
Additional details for the trial can be found here.
Source: PR Newswire
18 December 2020