Commercialising a technology to reduce aggregation of fully human antibodies
Sydney, Australia, 15 January 2015- Solvanix Pty Ltd, an early stage biotechnology company with a novel technology for improving stability and reducing the aggregation of fully human antibodies, developed by the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, was launched today with start-up financing from Australia’s Medical Research Commercialisation Fund (MRCF).
Solvanix’ proprietary StAbilize™ technology works by maximizing colloidal stability and by reducing aggregation of monoclonal antibody products. The StAbilize™ process optimizes amino acids at specific locations within the antibody complementarity determining regions (CDRs). The result is a fully human antibody with drastically improved stability and a reduced propensity to aggregate that still retains all the properties necessary for therapeutic use.
Solvanix will work with the biotech and pharma industries developing therapeutic antibodies incorporating the StAbilize™ technology. Non-exclusive licenses are available for the StAbilize™ technology.
The MRCF, managed by Brandon Capital Partners, has committed AU$2 million to fund Solvanix and establish a service business that allows the rapid incorporation of the StAbilize™ technology into human antibody candidates at all stages of development and commercialization. The company will be based at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney, Australia.
Commenting on the new company, Chris Smith, Non-executive Director of Solvanix and Investment Manager at Brandon Capital Partners, said “Solvanix is a great example of the pioneering technologies that the MRCF is set up to commercialize. This is the only broadly applicable technology proven to reduce antibody aggregation. StAbilize™ has a broad range of benefits such that it should be a game-changing addition to the global antibody therapeutics industry.”
Associate Professor Daniel Christ, founder and CSO of Solvanix, Conjoint Associate Professor in the Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Australia and Head of the Antibody Therapeutics Laboratory at the Garvan Institute in Sydney, added: “A critical problem in the development and manufacture of therapeutic antibodies is their tendency to aggregate under certain conditions. This leads to sub optimal candidates being developed, increases the costs for what are already expensive biopharmaceuticals and limits the utility for certain applications. With the StAbilize™ technology such instability and aggregation can be simply and cost-effectively eliminated and optimal antibodies developed.”
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Notes To Editors:
About Solvanix
Solvanix is a biotechnology company with a novel technology for improving stability and reducing the aggregation of fully human antibodies. Traditional monoclonal and fragment antibodies can have limited stability and a tendency to aggregate, which greatly impacts manufacturability, formulation and product quality. Solvanix’ proprietary StAbilize™ technology works by boosting stability and reducing aggregation of monoclonal antibodies, antibody fragments and bi-specifics. The Company is working with its biotech and pharma partners to improve their therapeutic antibodies and is providing licenses to the StAbilize™ technology.
For further information please visit: www.solvanix.com
About the Garvan Institute of Medical Research
The Garvan Institute of Medical Research was founded in 1963. Initially a research department of St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney, it is now one of Australia’s largest medical research institutions with over 700 scientists, students and support staff. Garvan’s main research areas are: Cancer, Diabetes & Obesity, Immunology and Inflammation, Osteoporosis and Bone Biology, and Neuroscience. Garvan’s mission is to make significant contributions to medical science that will change the directions of science and medicine and have major impacts on human health. The outcome of Garvan’s discoveries is the development of better methods of diagnosis, treatment, and ultimately, prevention of disease.
For further information please visit: www.garvan.org.au
About The Medical Research Commercialisation Fund (MRCF)
The $51 million Medical Research Commercialisation Fund (MRCF) is an innovative investment collaboration established in 2007 and managed by Brandon Capital Partners (www.brandoncapital.com.au). The MRCF invests in early stage development and commercialisation opportunities emanating from its member Australian medical research institutes and allied research hospitals, which includes the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney. The MRCF IIF, LP fund is supported by AustralianSuper, StatewideSuper and the Australian Government through its Innovation Investment Fund (IIF) program. The MRCF Collaboration also acknowledges the support of the State Governments of Victoria, New South Wales, Western Australia, Queensland and South Australia.
For further information please visit: www.mrcf.com.au
For more information please contact:
In Australia:
Dr Douglas Pretsell
+61 (0)3 9657 0706, +61 (0)466 925 966
Solvanix[at]instinctif.com
In Europe/USA:
Andreas Zunhammer
+49 (0) 89 3090 5189 11
Solvanix[at]instinctif.com
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