Nona Biosciences Collaborates with Umoja Biopharma to Advance in Vivo CAR-T Cell Therapies
Overview
Nona Biosciences, a global biotechnology company providing a total solution from “Idea to IND” (I to ITM), announced that it has entered into a multi-target antibody discovery collaboration with Umoja Biopharma, a transformative immunotherapy company creating off-the-shelf treatments that aim to extend the reach and effectiveness of CAR-T cell therapies in oncology and autoimmunity. This collaboration leverages Nona’s proprietary fully human heavy chain only antibody (HCAb) technology to produce novel in vivo generated CAR-T cell therapy drug candidates.
Fully Human HCAbs
Fully human HCAbs have the potential to significantly reduce immunogenicity and offer versatility in CAR design due to their compact size, simplified structure, and precisely calibrated binding properties.
About the Partnership
This partnership aims to combine Nona’s HCAb Harbour Mice platform and direct CAR-function-based HCAb library screening platform (NonaCarFx) with Umoja’s VivoVec platform to develop novel in vivo CAR-T cell therapies and expand the potential reach of this innovative delivery technology.
From the Chairman of Nona Biosciences
Dr. Jingsong Wang, MD, PhD, chairman of Nona Biosciences, commented, “We are excited to collaborate with Umoja Biopharma, a pioneer in cell and gene therapy. We believe that our HCAb Harbour Mice technology and NonaCarFx platform, alongside with our extensive experience in oncology and immunology, will empower Umoja to generate novel CAR-T cell therapies that benefit patients worldwide.”
From Umoja’s Executive Vice President
Byoung Ryu, PhD, Umoja’s executive vice president of discovery research and vector biology added, “Nona is a great partner for Umoja as we continue to move the CAR-T cell field towards directly administrated in vivo CAR therapeutics. Nona has demonstrated capabilities for generating highly functional CAR candidates, and we look forward to developing multiple in vivo drug candidates through this partnership and ultimately, helping change outcomes for these patients.”
Nona Biosciences
Nona Biosciences (a wholly-owned subsidiary of HBM Holdings) is a global biotechnology company committed to cutting-edge technology innovations and providing a total solution from “Idea to IND” (I to ITM), ranging from target validation and antibody discovery through preclinical research.
About Umoja Biopharma, Inc.
Umoja Biopharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company aiming to develop off-the-shelf therapeutics that improve the reach, effectiveness, and access of CAR-T cell therapies in both oncology and autoimmunity.