Surrozen and Lonza Announce Partnership for the Development and Manufacture of Surrozen’s Novel Wnt Activating Antibodies
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San Francisco (CA), USA and Basel, Switzerland, 29 May 2020 – Surrozen, Inc. a biotechnology company pioneering a new class of targeted regenerative antibodies, and Lonza today announced that the companies have signed a collaboration agreement. Lonza will provide contract development and cGMP manufacturing services for Surrozen's first two, and potentially additional, development candidates. Surrozen will leverage Lonza's process development and manufacturing capabilities and expertise in cell line development, early-stage formulation development and drug product manufacture. Process development and drug substance manufacturing will take place in Lonza's cGMP facility for mammalian biopharmaceuticals in Slough, UK. The early-stage formulation and DP manufacture will be carried out in the Drug Product Services facility in Basel and Lonza's recently acquired fill and finish facility in Stein, Switzerland. The agreement includes Lonza's Light Path™ cell line development program that will provide Surrozen with material to enter a phase I clinical study. This offering that includes gene to cGMP drug substance and drug product production services will help Surrozen to meet their clinical product supply needs as well as provide a CMC regulatory package for their IND filing. The scope of the package was tailored for the molecule to ensure the program met their requirements. The two initial development candidates represent potent multivalent bi-specific antibodies that directly activate the Wnt signaling pathway, which regulates multiple biological processes and plays a key role in tissue homeostasis and injury repair. These candidates are both in the preclinical phase with potential INDs in 2021 and 2022. Surrozen's targeted approach to tissue-specific regenerative medicine aims to impact many areas, including neurodegenerative, lung, and inflammatory diseases. |
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About Lonza At Lonza, we combine technological innovation with world class manufacturing and process excellence. Together, these enable our customers to deliver their discoveries in the healthcare, preservation, and protection sectors. We are a preferred global partner to the pharmaceutical, biotech and specialty ingredients markets. We work to prevent illness and promote a healthier world by enabling our customers to deliver innovative medicines that help treat or even cure a wide range of diseases. We also offer a broad range of microbial control solutions, which help to create and maintain a healthy environment. Founded in 1897 in the Swiss Alps, Lonza today operates in 120 sites and offices in more than 35 countries. With approximately 15,500 full-time employees, we are built from high-performing teams and of individual employees who make a meaningful difference to our own business, as well as the communities in which we operate. The company generated sales of CHF 5.9 billion in 2019 with a CORE EBITDA of CHF 1.6 billion. Find out more at www.lonza.com and follow us on Twitter @LonzaGroup or Facebook @LonzaGroupAG. About Surrozen’s Proprietary Antibody Platforms Since its founding in 2016, Surrozen has developed two proprietary platforms to selectively modulate the Wnt pathway for the potential treatment of injury and disease. Surrozen Wnt-mimetics, also referred to as SWAPs (Surrozen Wnt Signal Activating Proteins), are bi-specific full-length human (IgG) antibodies that directly activate the canonical Wnt signaling pathway in target tissue. Surrozen R-spondin-mimetics, also referred to as SWEETS (Surrozen Wnt Signal Enhancer Engineered for Tissue Specificity), are uniquely engineered antibodies that stabilize Wnt receptors. About Surrozen Surrozen is a biotechnology company pioneering a new class of targeted regenerative antibodies to repair a broad range of tissues and organs damaged by serious disease. Surrozen is designing tissue-specific antibodies that engage the body’s own biological repair mechanisms resulting in a broad pipeline of disease-specific therapies to help patients across multiple disease areas. For more information, please visit surrozen.com. Lonza Contact Details
Surrozen Contact Details Reza Afkhami VP, Corporate Development and Strategy Surrozen, Inc. Additional Information and Disclaimer Lonza Group Ltd has its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland, and is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. It has a secondary listing on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (“SGX-ST”). Lonza Group Ltd is not subject to the SGX-ST’s continuing listing requirements but remains subject to Rules 217 and 751 of the SGX-ST Listing Manual. Certain matters discussed in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations and estimates of Lonza Group Ltd, although Lonza Group Ltd can give no assurance that these expectations and estimates will be achieved. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainty and are qualified in their entirety. The actual results may differ materially in the future from the forward-looking statements included in this news release due to various factors. Furthermore, except as otherwise required by law, Lonza Group Ltd disclaims any intention or obligation to update the statements contained in this news release. |