Humanyx will work with GIS and licence its phage library to GIS and scientists at the GIS will use the phage library for research and development to identify antibodies or anti-binding regions against H5N1 virus. The H5N1 virus has led to the deaths of millions of birds and is commonly known as the “bird flu”. 50% of humans known to have been infected with the current Asian strain of H5N1 have died from it. On September 29, 2005, David Nabarro, the Senior United Nations System Coordinator for Avian and Human Influenza, warned the world that an outbreak of avian influenza could kill between 5 million and 150 million people.
Although Oseltamivir (an antiviral drug commonly known as Tamiflu) can sometimes inhibit the influenza virus from spreading inside the user's body, the continual mutation of H5N1 renders them of limited use to date. In September, 2006, a WHO scientist announced that studies had confirmed cases of strains resistant to Tamiflu. Humanyx and GIS are perfectly placed to develop monoclonal antibodies against H5N1 which will be a valuable and important armament in the fight against bird flu.
About Humanyx Humanyx Pte Ltd is a therapeutic antibody company which addresses critically unmet medical needs. Humanyx has an interest, expertise, proprietary technologies and know-how in the fields of monoclonal antibody (mAb) engineering and affinity maturation for therapeutic and diagnostic use and Humanyx possesses a phage library and ancilliary technology. Humanyx technology enables the creation of human therapeutic antibody candidates against virtually any disease target, and has already succeeded in identifying such high potency human antibodies against targets in three disease areas.
Humanyx has a unique intellectual property position that provides important competitive advantages over its competitors. The staff has extensive know-how in the use of antibody libraries and a combined experience of more than 50 years in the development of antibodies and other biotherapeutics. About Genome Institute of Singapore
The Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) is a member of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR). A national initiative established in 2001, the research institute’s mission is to be a world-class genomics institute and a centre for genomic discovery. GIS pursues the integration of technology, genetics and biology towards the goal of individualized medicine. The genomics infrastructure at GIS is utilized to train new scientific talent, to act as a bridge between academic and industrial research, and explore scientific questions of high impact. For its H5N1 avian influenza virus research, GIS has developed a set of proprietary PCR primers which have been used successfully worldwide (Brunei, Oman, Kuwait, UK, UAE, France, Vietnam and Indonesia). In 2005, the World Health Organization (WHO) Influenza Centre has tested the primers and found it to be highly specific and sensitive.
For further information: Casey K. Chan MD Chief Executive Officer Humanyx
