HiFiBiO Therapeutics has signed a deal with Japanese Big Pharma and biotech friend Takeda, to work on antibody therapies for various gastrointestinal diseases, cancers and other disorders.

HiFiBiO, which works on antibodies through single-B-cell screening and analysis, will receive upfront, R&D, milestone and royalty payments based on antibodies delivered to Takeda for development and sales, but both are keeping tight-lipped on just how much that’s all worth.  

In May, the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company got off a $37.5 million series B round, coming off a 2017 management shuffle, which saw the biotech hire a new president and CEO in Liang Schweizer, Ph.D., who previously held management roles in cancer research at Sanofi and Bristol-Myers Squibb.

The company’s drug discovery platform, CelliGO, looks to develop therapeutic antibodies and immune system modulators through single-B-cell screening, phenotyping and analysis.

Both companies said their scientists will work together to discover antibodies against Takeda’s targets using HiFiBiO Therapeutics’ single-cell screening capabilities. Takeda will be responsible for the preclinical and clinical development of the discovered antibodies.

"Takeda is a world leader in oncology, gastroenterology and neuroscience therapeutics," said Schweizer.

"This multi-target partnership further validates our ongoing commitment to these types of open-innovation collaborations to better address unmet medical needs around the world."

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