Merck KGaA will collaborate with F-Star, a biopharmaceutical company in the United Kingdom, to develop and commercialize five bispecific immuno-oncology antibodies.
"Our collaboration with F-star will help us to rapidly enhance our pipeline and grow our portfolio of bispecific immunotherapies," Luciano Rossetti, executive vice president of Merck, said in a statement. "This deal complements our internal capabilities in immuno-oncology and positions us as a potential leader in this important area of research.”
In addition to the ability to work on the five bispecific immuno-oncology antibodies, Merck will be able to replace and add to these antibodies by using F-Star’s bispecific antibody platform. Merck noted that the collaboration will help the company grow its immuno-oncology pipeline.
"This immuno-oncology collaboration expands our strong relationship with Merck KGaA ... and is a further validation of the potential of F-star's bispecific antibody platform," John Haurum, CEO of F-star, said. "Our vision is to transform the treatment of cancer. This is the objective of partnering our lead asset FS118 and other next-generation immuno-oncology compounds with Merck KGaA."
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