Bionomics broadens Genmab collaboration

Bionomics (ASX:BNO) has added a third target to its antibody development collaboration with Danish biotech Genmab, broadening the project's product potential.

Under the deal, signed in March, the companies agreed to jointly develop human antibodies to two angiogenesis targets identified by the South Australian genomics research group.

Bionomics chief executive Dr Deborah Rathjen said the addition of the latest target, which has a patent pending, broadens the project's scope and potential commercial outcomes.

"I think investors can read into the announcement that the third target signed into the collaboration is potentially a very important target because it is associated with lung and liver cancers, which are diseases that require new approaches to treatment and have big market opportunities," Rathjen said.

"We are now on track to seeing a first antibody product entering clinical phase within two years."

The latest target appears in the chromosomal region and is particularly amplified in lung and liver cancers, which represent global markets of about $US2 billion each.

Rathjen said other progress within the R&D collaboration included the development of a project plan, project committee and steering committee.

"This is a very important partnership for Bionomics as the world antibody market is currently worth more than $US3 billion," Rathjen said, explaining that antibody products had shorter development times than typical small molecule drugs.

"Working with Genmab will see Bionomics accelerate its product rollout from the lab to clinical use and human benefit."

Angiogenesis is a process implicated in cancers and inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

The process involves the creation of new blood vessels and is regulated by a balance between pro- and anti-angiogenic molecules that, when disrupted can contributes to disease spread.

Industry estimates suggest that diseases that may be treated by angiogenesis based therapies account for 20 per cent of the $US322 billion global pharmaceuticals market.

Bionomics' collaboration with Genmab sees each party pay for its own share of R&D costs, while enabling them to share in the commercial bounty.

Genmab's part of the deal draws on its fully human antibody technology, biological assays and animal disease models to generate and test antibodies to the new angiogenesis targets.

Bionomics will then screen the antibodies to select the most appropriate candidates for development.

Under the agreement, if Genmab fails to produce antibodies for a specific target within two years, it will revert to Bionomics.