Harbour Antibodies BV, an Erasmus MC spin-off company, announced today the completion of a non-exclusive research and licence agreement with Eli Lilly and Company ("Lilly"), a global pharmaceutical company, to generate and develop human therapeutic antibodies comprising immunoglobulin heavy and light chains(H2L2) using one of Harbour's transgenic mouse antibody discovery platforms.
Under the terms of the agreement Harbour will receive an upfront payment, success-based fees, and potential downstream product milestones and royalties. Specific financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are delighted to partner with Lilly," said Professor Frank Grosveld, The Head of Cell Biology and Genetics at ErasmusMC, and the Chief Scientific Officer of Harbour Antibodies BV. "Transgenic mice utilise the natural immune response and have proved over the last decade to be a very reliable route to discover potential human antibody based medicines. Recent industry acquisitions leave scope for new transgenic mouse platforms to meet the continuing clinical need for therapeutic antibody discovery. The Harbour H2L2 transgenic mouse platform will meet this need".