Singapore - 3 May 2017 Hummingbird is focused on applying advances in systems biology to rapidly develop antibodies into successful cancer therapeutics. The company will use the funds raised to advance its lead programs towards the clinic with plans to submit the first IND in 2018. The programs in question; HMBD-001 targeting a novel mechanism on HER3, and HMBD-002 targeting a novel epitope on VISTA, have already shown great promise in early animal studies.
“Today’s funding, and the involvement of such an experienced team of biotech investors, will allow us to propel our lead projects towards the clinic, and seed our pipeline with further exciting projects”, said Dr Piers Ingram, CEO of Hummingbird. “In less than 3 years we have built a fantastic team and developed a game-changing platform for antibody drug discovery and a development that continues to yield novel antibody therapeutics against multiple targets. We are grateful for the support of Decheng Capital in our ongoing endeavours to harness systems biology for drug development and rapidly reach the most in-need patients with new therapies”
Dr Min Cui, Managing Partner of Decheng, will join the Board of Hummingbird. “In just a short time Hummingbird has already demonstrated the power of their systems biology driven approach to antibody drug discovery. We recognise the potential of Hummingbird’s programs to deliver valuable new therapeutics to the evolving oncology treatment space and we welcome the opportunity to be part of Hummingbird’s growth into a clinical stage company. We are confident that Hummingbird’s pipeline will continue to deliver multiple novel therapeutics for many years to come.”
About Hummingbird Bioscience
Hummingbird Bioscience is a highly innovative biotech company, with facilities in Singapore and Silicon Valley, focused on applying advances in systems biology to rapidly develop antibodies into successful cancer therapeutics. Recognition of the importance of both tumor evolution and evasion of immune response as a key “hallmark of cancer” has provided a wide new class of targets. Building on these insights, Hummingbird is developing a comprehensive framework to systematically address the barriers to an effective immune response in every patient. Using its Rational Antibody Development Platform, a proprietary systems immunology and computational structural biology approach that enables precise targeting of epitopes and mechanism of action, Hummingbird Bioscience has developed a pipeline of highly promising oncology and immunooncology assets.
(http://www.hummingbirdbio.com)
About DeCheng Capital
DeCheng Capital is a leading investment firm that provides capital and strategic support to early stage life science companies with revolutionary technologies and growth stage healthcare companies with strong market presence. Located in Shanghai and Silicon Valley, Decheng is a group of dedicated professionals with complementary expertise who have outstanding track records of building highly successful companies both in China and U.S. Founded in 2012, Decheng continues to capitalize on a historic opportunity in the rapid growth of China’s healthcare industry as well as breakthroughs in life science research worldwide. With over $440 million in capital under management and support from some of the most prestigious LPs in the world, Decheng is poised to deliver superior returns for our investors and create value for our entrepreneur partners. (http://decheng.com)
