VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 24, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AbCellera Biologics Inc., a biotechnology company specializing in the rapid discovery of monoclonal antibodies from natural immune cells, announced today the successful completion of its antibody discovery partnership with Kodiak Sciences.
Through this collaboration, AbCellera applied its antibody discovery platform to perform ultra-deep screening of immunized animals and identified hundreds of antibodies against an undisclosed target. Multiplexed single cell binding assays were used to enrich for antibodies with high affinity and desired properties, resulting in the generation of multiple lead antibody families with picomolar affinity and potent blocking activity.
Dr. Carl Hansen, CEO and co-founder of AbCellera commented: “AbCellera is committed to delivering industry-leading antibody discovery to enable and accelerate partner programs. Our work with Kodiak is a flagship example of our ability to collaborate effectively with innovative biotech companies. It has been a pleasure to work with the Kodiak team, and we are grateful for the opportunity to participate in the advancement of their next-generation therapies.”
“AbCellera has outperformed our expectations,” said Dr. Victor Perlroth, Chairman and CEO of Kodiak Sciences. “AbCellera’s technology platform leverages the many benefits of in vivo selection and maturation while avoiding the inefficiency of traditional hybridoma approaches. They screened over one million antibody-producing single cells and delivered relevant antibody sequences covering a diverse functional and sequence space.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Kodiak has executed its option to advance selected candidates for clinical development with AbCellera eligible to receive downstream payments. Other financial terms were not disclosed.
About AbCellera Biologics Inc.
AbCellera is a privately held biotechnology company that provides enabling technologies for the discovery and development of monoclonal antibody (mAb) therapies directly from natural immune cells.
AbCellera’s lead technology is a proprietary single cell antibody discovery platform that provides pharma and biotech partners with the ability to rapidly identify mAb therapeutic candidates from the natural immune repertoires of any species, including humans. For more information, please visit www.abcellera.com.
About Kodiak Sciences Inc.
Kodiak is designing and developing novel therapies for the treatment of retinal disease. For further information about the company, please visit www.kodiak.com.