China-based Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) Co., Ltd has announced the launch of the “Nano 100 Project,” an ambitious initiative designed to develop fully human nanobody drugs for over 100 targets. This project leverages Biocytogen’s proprietary fully human nanobody mouse, RenNano, in conjunction with its high-throughput in vitro and in vivo antibody screening platforms, enabling large-scale development of fully human nanobody drugs.
RenNano Mouse and Its Capabilities
Biocytogen successfully engineered the RenNano mouse from its fully human antibody mouse, RenMab. The RenNano mouse features full human heavy chain variable regions and is capable of producing heavy-chain-only antibodies (HCAbs). The variable regions of HCAbs, known as nanobodies, do not require in vitro humanization for drug development. Research has demonstrated that the RenNano mouse can generate robust immune responses following immunizations with various antigens. HCAbs produced by the RenNano mouse exhibit highly diverse CDR3 sequences and can recognize numerous epitopes with nM-level high affinities. In vitro and in vivo experiments have confirmed that antibodies derived from the RenNano mouse possess favorable biological functions.
Nano 100 Project Objectives and Collaborations
Building on RenNano’s exceptional ability to discover fully human nanobodies, Biocytogen has initiated the “Nano 100 Project.” The project targets the development of fully human therapeutic nanobodies against over 100 targets, encompassing tumor-associated antigens (TAAs), GPCRs, immune checkpoints, cytokines, and factors related to neurological diseases. Biocytogen is actively seeking collaborations with global pharmaceutical and biotech companies. By combining its large-scale nanobody development capabilities with collaborators’ expertise in nanobody-related therapeutics—such as cell therapies, bispecific and multi-specific antibodies, ADCs, and RACs—Biocytogen aims to develop novel drugs with first-in-class and/or best-in-class potentials.-Fineline Info & Tech
