Biolojic Design lands drug discovery collaboration with Merck potentially worth up to 346 million euros
Biolojic Design lands drug discovery collaboration with Merck potentially worth up to 346 million euros
The partnership will leverage Biolojic Design’s AI-driven discovery platform to design therapeutic antibodies for the treatment of cancer and immunological disorders.
Israeli company Biolojic Design has signed a collaboration agreement with the pharmaceutical giant Merck, potentially worth up to 346 million euros. In the first phase, the veteran start-up from Rehovot will receive slightly more than 10 million euros for the development of two molecules that could serve as the basis for drugs targeting cancer and several immunological disorders. As development progresses, Biolojic Design will receive additional funding. The company will only receive the full amount if the drug reaches the market and begins to generate sales, meaning royalties will come from sales in the most optimistic scenario. However, many years may pass before this is realized, if at all. Nonetheless, this agreement serves as a significant endorsement from one of the largest pharmaceutical companies and could lead to additional agreements with other pharmaceutical giants.
Biolojic Design was established in 2008 by Professor Yanay Ofran, who serves as CEO. It employs approximately 50 people in the Science Park in Rehovot. The company develops smart antibodies using computational biology and artificial intelligence (AI) and primarily operates through collaborations with drug development companies. For instance, it has an agreement with Teva, signed about six months ago, for the joint development of asthma and eczema medications. Biolojic Design is focused on developing drugs that can adapt to the patient and change over time to maintain treatment efficacy.
Biolojic Design has raised about $30 million to date, with shareholders including several angels in the biomed field and the aMoon fund, established by Marius Nacht and specializing in investments in the medical field. The largest fundraising, of $20 million, occurred in 2018, and the most recent, of $4 million, was completed in 2021. An agreement like the one Biolojic Design has now signed with Merck allows it to secure funding without diluting shareholders.
"Biolojic’s clinically validated AI platform allows us to modulate human biology in a uniquely precise way to treat disease, giving us the potential to discover medicines against well validated targets," said Yanay Ofran, Ph.D., CEO and founder of Biolojic Design. “In this collaboration, we will apply our multibody capabilities to create next generation antibody-based therapies, including ADCs with the potential to block tumor escape mechanisms, overcome tumor and patient heterogeneity and offer improved safety and efficacy."
