Schering Plough gets access to antibody library and research

Schering-Plough has signed a two-year license agreement with MorphoSys, a German biotechnology company, to allow it access to MorphoSys’ library of antibodies to further their development. MorphSys says the deal will allow Schering-Plough to develop their antibodies for up to ten disease-related targets.

The deal will involve an up-front payment from Schering-Plough as well as annual user fees and the possibility of research and development funding. MorphoSys will also receive royalty payments for any successfully developed products.

The antibody library, known as HuCAL, is described by MorphoSys as a “very powerful technology and it comprises some ten billion unique human antibodies. It also allows “rapid and automated” production of those antibodies for research purposes. As part of the agreement, a HuCAL library will be installed in Schering-Plough’s Palo Alto research site.

Dr Simon Moroney, chief executive officer of MorphoSys, said: “The agreement signed today is our twelfth with a top 20 pharmaceutical company.”

“This deal marks further progress in the successful execution of our strategy to strengthen the pipeline of therapeutic antibodies based on our proprietary technology through strategic deals with quality partners,” he added.

MorphoSys, which has been in operation since 1992, also has licensing agreements with Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Merck, Novartis, Pfizer and Schering AG. In January 2005 MorphoSys acquired the Biogenesis Group, a joint UK/US company with headquarters in Poole, Dorset.

© Adfero Ltd