The collaboration will leverage BioInvent’s F.I.R.S.T. technology, a functional approach to therapeutic antibody discovery.
The research team will provide the collaboration with biological pathways for the development of new oncology therapies.
Cancer Research UK senior research fellow Thorsten Hagemann said by combining the preclinical expertise in animal models within the laboratory and access to patient samples with BioInvent’s F.I.R.S.T. technology the team hopes to speed up the discovery and development of new possible treatments.
"We will focus primarily on targets which affect the pro-tumour role of myeloid cells in solid malignancies, an area in which my lab has developed significant experience," Hagemann added.
The F.I.R.S.T. platform enables identification of functionally superior antibodies across multiple targets overexpressed by target cells, through its biopanning technology.
The combined target and drug discovery platform uses primary cancer patient cells as an antigen source allowing for discovery of novel specificities (receptors and epitopes) and target receptor functions.
According to BioInvent, the agreement gives it the option to enter into licenses to bring forward drug candidates beyond lead candidate identification in exchange for milestones and royalties to CRT.