Diverse panel of novel target binders from FairJourney Biologics and IONTAS will be used to uncover functional antibodies to advance autoimmune and inflammatory disease research

Porto, Portugal, Cambridge and London, UK, 23rd November 2020: FairJourney Biologics S.A (FJB) and IONTAS Limited (IONTAS), leaders in the discovery and optimization of VHH and fully human antibodies, today announced they have signed an agreement to discover antibodies with Pandion Therapeutics (Pandion). The partnership will harness both FJB and IONTAS’ proprietary antibody libraries and technology platforms to investigate novel therapeutic targets for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

Pandion focuses on the development of innovative modular therapeutics using its TALON™ (Therapeutic Autoimmune reguLatOry proteiN) drug design and discovery platform. The TALON effector modules are based on immunomodulatory molecules that act as regulatory control points within the immune system. In conjunction with a tissue-specific targeting moiety, the effectors create novel bifunctional molecules for the treatment of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

Under the terms of the agreement, Pandion will access the novel libraries and platform technologies provided by FJB and IONTAS. A dedicated FJB/IONTAS FTE will be assigned to the project with the aim of discovering diverse panels of novel target binders for use within the TALON platform. The Agreement extends an existing relationship between the companies and gives Pandion the option to use standard phage display or mammalian display as the engines for the discovery of next generation antibodies.

Dr António Parada, CEO at FairJourney Biologics and IONTAS, commented: “Our teams have gained considerable experience in antibody discovery for use in generating mono-specific and bi-specific therapeutics. We now have a pipeline of undisclosed therapeutic partnerships nearing clinical research. We look forward to continuing our relationship with Pandion and applying our experience and expertise to generate a diverse set of antibodies for further study.”

Dr Hussam Shaheen, Director of Antibody Discovery and Engineering at Pandion Therapeutics, said: “Our TALON platform leverages natural immune regulatory mechanisms, to re-balance immune responses and ultimately advance discovery into novel treatments for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. The experience in antibody discovery shared by FJB and IONTAS, together with their unique library of target binders, makes them ideal partners as we focus on successfully progressing these transformational therapies to patients in need.”

For further information, please visit: http://fjb.pt/2020/11/fairjourney-biologics-and-iontas-enter-antibody-discovery-agreement-with-pandion-therapeutics/