Harbour BioMed, together with its Dutch partners, has struck a deal with AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV) to develop a novel COVID-19 therapeutic antibody. One month ago, HBM, Utrecht University and Erasmus Medical Center announced they had discovered an antibody that targets the conserved domain of the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2. AbbVie will support their early preclinical development of 47D11, a fully human, neutralizing antibody, while it plans for later preclinical testing and clinical trials. In return, AbbVie has an option to in-license the mAb. Harbour has antibody drug development operations in Rotterdam.

The discovery of 47D11 was announced in the journal Nature Communications. According to the researchers, the mAb blocked infection by the SARS-CoV-2 and a second coronavirus SARS-CoV in cell culture studies. HBM says its antibodies, because they are fully human, are designed to facilitate development and minimize immune-related side effects.

HBM operates R&D labs in Suzhou and conducts clinical trials of its pipeline in China and the US.

"Treatment and prevention of COVID-19 remains a critical global need. The antibody discovered by UU, EMC and Harbour BioMed is extremely promising based on the mechanism by which it targets the virus and on its developability as a fully human protein," said Tom Hudson, MD, Senior Vice President, Research and Development and Chief Scientific Officer, AbbVie. "We look forward to working with this outstanding team to advance this antibody towards clinical trials."

"AbbVie is a global leader in developing innovative antiviral therapies," said Dr. Jingsong Wang, Founder, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of HBM. "This collaboration will greatly accelerate our efforts to bring this antibody forward into clinical trials as quickly as possible and contribute a solution to this pandemic."

"The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has highlighted the importance of understanding coronavirus biology," said Berend-Jan Bosch, PhD, Associate Professor, Research leader at UU. "The collaboration with AbbVie provides an excellent opportunity to translate our research into a clinical candidate with great potential for advancing the fight against this disease."

Frank Grosveld, PhD, Academy Professor of Cell Biology, EMC, Rotterdam and Founding Chief Scientific Officer at Harbour BioMed, commented, "The collaboration is an endorsement of our approach to fully human antibody discovery and development. Through this collaboration, we are well positioned to move rapidly towards clinical trials."

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Disclosure: none.