On December 20, 2021 FibroGen, Inc. (Nasdaq: FGEN), a leading biopharmaceutical company discovering, developing, and commercializing first-in-class therapeutics, and HiFiBiO Therapeutics, a private, multinational clinical-stage biotherapeutics company with expertise in immune modulation and single cell science, reported an extension of their partnership with FibroGen’s exercise of an exclusive license option for HiFiBiO’s anti-CCR8 monoclonal antibody program (HFB1011) (Press release, HiFiBiO Therapeutics, DEC 20, 2021, View Source [SID1234597440]).
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"We are pleased to add the HiFiBiO CCR8 program and the HFB101110 molecule to our preclinical development pipeline," said John Hunter, Chief Scientific Officer, FibroGen. "With this addition in the immuno-oncology space, we have the exciting opportunity to further expand our early development pipeline."
"We are excited to strengthen our FibroGen partnership with the license of HFB1011, a unique program targeting CCR8, a GPCR majorly expressed on regulatory T cells in the tumor microenvironment. Our antibody, identified by using our single B cell cloning platform, is another demonstration of our Drug Intelligent Science (DIS) approach for novel drug discovery and development. Together with the Galectin-9 program (HFB2009), we expand our collaboration with FibroGen to develop transformative medicines in immuno-oncology", said Liang Schweizer, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, HiFiBiO.
Under the terms of the agreement, HiFiBiO will receive a $35 million upfront payment from FibroGen in addition to potential clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestones. HiFiBiO will also be eligible to receive royalties based upon net sales.
FibroGen will have the sole right to develop all products in the CCR8 program worldwide. The development candidate is expected to enter clinical development in 2023.
About CCR8
CCR8 is a GPCR with prevalent and highly specific expression on immunosuppressive tumor infiltrating regulatory T cells (Tregs) across different tumor types. Stimulation of CCR8 by its ligand results in proliferation of Tregs and immune-suppression in the tumor microenvironment. Targeting CCR8 with an antibody able to mediate cell killing through antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) offers the potential to selectively deplete highly immunosuppressive Tregs in the tumor microenvironment and promote anti-tumor immunity.