UQ and Biosceptre collaborate on cancer antibody research

UniQuest, The University of Queensland’s (UQ) main commercialisation company, has facilitated a strategic research collaboration and antibody production agreement between Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN) researchers and Biosceptre International to develop a bioprocess for producing certain monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of cancer.

Under the UniQuest agreement, the AIBN’s National Biologics Facility (NBF) will characterise candidate therapeutic monoclonal antibodies that bind Biosceptre’s novel proprietary cancer target, known as nf-P2X₇. The research and development will include antibody development, cell line development, bioprocess development and recombinant protein production in pre-commercial quantities ahead of preclinical trials.

UniQuest Managing Director David Henderson said the partnership with Biospectre reflected the commitment by UQ and the AIBN to work closely with private industry to discover new potential cancer therapies.

“Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide and the disease with the highest unmet medical need. Biospectre’s recognition of the AIBN’s capabilities demonstrates the value industry places on working with Australian university researchers to optimise the outcomes from both publicly and privately funded research for the benefit of the wider community,” Henderson said.

The collaboration was made possible with support from Medigen, a privately held investment company which is linked to the Creata group of companies and utilises the services of Creata Ventures. No commercial terms of the agreement have been disclosed.

Biosceptre’s CEO, Dr Cliff Holloway, said the research collaboration was a critical step towards preclinical and human clinical trials involving its monoclonal antibody targeting the non-functional form of P2X₇, a major cellular receptor responsible for apoptosis (the process of normal cell death).

“Our long-term goal is to develop a therapeutic monoclonal antibody capable of specifically detecting non-functional P2X₇ and inducing cancer cell death without affecting normal healthy cells,” Dr Holloway said.

“Having evaluated a number of national and international providers of such antibody services, we have been impressed with the advanced equipment and quality of the infrastructure at the AIBN National Biologics Facility. The technical expertise of Dr David Chin, NBF Operations Manager, and his team in our pre-deal evaluation has already delivered value for Biosceptre.”

The collaboration was hinted at during a conference earlier this year, in which Biosceptre announced that it was working with AIBN to make higher affinity antibodies for its targeted cancer treatment.