Adimab, LLC, a technology leader in the discovery of fully human antibodies and bispecifics, has entered into a collaboration with Kite Pharma, Inc, whereby Adimab will use its proprietary platform to generate IgGs against multiple targets selected by Kite.

“Kite has established itself as a leader in the field of engineered autologous cell therapies, and we are excited to have the opportunity to work with them,” said Tillman Gerngross, chief executive officer and co-founder of Adimab. “Our platform can rapidly deliver a diverse panel of antibodies with varying affinities and ultra-high selectivity.”

“Kite is focused on finding partnerships, such as this collaboration with Adimab, that help us establish a competitive advantage in the CAR-T space,” said Margo Roberts, Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Kite.

Kite and Adimab have entered into a collaboration whereby Adimab will use its proprietary discovery and optimization platform to identify fully human antibodies against selected targets. For each target, the agreement grants Kite the right to research antibodies generated during the collaboration for potential use in therapeutic CAR-T products. Kite will also have the option to exclusively license antibodies for development and commercialization as therapeutic CAR products. Adimab will receive an undisclosed upfront payment, research fees and technical milestones, as well as license fees, certain additional milestones and royalties on any therapeutic CAR product sales that are optioned under the agreement.

Over the past 5+ years, Adimab has established funded discovery collaborations with over 30 companies. Adimab’s funded discovery partners include many leading pharmaceutical companies, such as Merck, Roche, Novartis, Eli Lilly, Genentech, Gilead, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, Sanofi and others. Adimab has also partnered with many mid-size and early-stage venture-backed companies, including Merrimack, Five Prime, Jounce, Innovent, Alector, Acceleron, Oncothyreon, Surface Oncology, Potenza, Arsanis and others. In addition, Adimab has transferred its platform for broad use to GSK, Biogen and Novo Nordisk.