MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) and Boehringer Ingelheim announced the signing of a biopharmaceutical manufacturing agreement for therapeutic antibodies. The agreement covers the process development and manufacturing of additional clinical material for MorphoSys's proprietary MOR208 program and other drug candidates. MOR208, a potent monoclonal anti-CD19 antibody, is in development for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia and potentially other B-cell malignancies. The program is currently being evaluated in a phase 1 clinical trial in the USA by MorphoSys's partner Xencor Inc.
"Adding an additional supplier to our proprietary development set-up will help to prevent any bottlenecks in clinical trial supply in the years ahead," commented Dr. Marlies Sproll, Chief Scientific Officer of MorphoSys AG. "Additionally, establishing a commercial manufacturing process with Boehringer Ingelheim early in the development of MOR208 will clearly increase the value of this program."
Simon Sturge, Corporate Senior Vice President of the Biopharmaceuticals Division at Boehringer Ingelheim, said: "We believe that the combination of MorphoSys's successful track record in the discovery and clinical development of antibody-based therapeutics and our proven competence in technical development and manufacturing will be an optimal fit. We look forward to supporting the team at MorphoSys with robust manufacturing processes for clinic and market supply."
"Boehringer Ingelheim is a world-class contract manufacturing organization and we are delighted to sign this agreement with them today," commented Dr Arndt Schottelius, Chief Development Officer of MorphoSys AG. "Our proprietary pipeline currently comprises eight fully-owned therapeutic antibodies in addition to two co-development candidates selected within the Novartis alliance. With MOR103, a HuCAL-based anti-inflammatory antibody targeting GM-CSF, and MOR202, a HuCAL-based cancer antibody targeting CD38, as well as MOR208, we will investigate three proprietary drug programs in clinical trials in 2011."
About MorphoSys
MorphoSys is an independent biotechnology company that develops novel antibodies for therapeutic, diagnostic and research applications. The Company's HuCAL technology is one of the most powerful methods available for generating fully human antibodies. By successfully applying this and other proprietary technologies, MorphoSys has become a leader in the field of therapeutic antibodies, one of the fastest-growing drug classes in human health-care. Through its alliances with some of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies, MorphoSys has created a pipeline of more than 60 drug candidates. The Company is expanding its drug pipeline by adding new partnered programs, and by building a portfolio of fully-owned therapeutic antibodies. For its proprietary portfolio, the Company is focused on the areas of oncology and inflammation. Its most advanced program MOR103, a first-in-class, fully human antibody against GM-CSF, is currently being tested in a Phase Ib/IIa trial in rheumatoid arthritis patients. Via its business unit AbD Serotec, MorphoSys is expanding the reach of its technologies in the diagnostics and research markets. MorphoSys is headquartered in Munich, Germany and listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol "MOR".
HuCAL ®, HuCAL GOLD ®, HuCAL PLATINUM ®, CysDisplay ® and RapMAT ® are registered trademarks of MorphoSys; arYla TM is a trademark of MorphoSys.
About Boehringer Ingelheim
The Boehringer Ingelheim group is one of the world's 20 leading pharmaceutical companies. Headquartered in Ingelheim, Germany, it operates globally with 142 affiliates in 50 countries and more than 41,500 employees. Since it was founded in 1885, the family-owned company has been committed for 125 years to researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing novel products of high therapeutic value for human and veterinary medicine.
Today, Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the world's leading companies for contract development and manufacture of biopharmaceuticals. All types of services from mammalian cell line or microbial strain development to final drug production can be delivered within a one-stop-shop concept. Boehringer Ingelheim delivers services for pre-clinical development up to global market supply with a strong commitment to its customers at its manufacturing facilities for mammalian cell culture and microbial fermentation. Boehringer Ingelheim has brought 18 molecules to market and has many years of experience in multiple molecule classes such as monoclonal antibodies, recombinant proteins, interferons, enzymes, fusion molecules and plasmid DNA. Furthermore, high-titer platform technologies for new antibody mimetic formats such as scaffold proteins and antibody fragments are available for the manufacture of customer products.