Pangen Confirms Virus Neutralization Efficacy of Antibodies for SFTS Treatment

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] PanGen announced on the 15th that it presented the process development of antibody candidates for the treatment of Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (SFTS) and the neutralization test results of the killer tick virus at the ‘2020 Osong Bio Excellence Forum’.

PanGen is currently co-developing antibody candidates for the treatment of Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (SFTS) with the Chinese company Weiklon. In January, PanGen introduced Weiklon’s patented technology to complete the development of production cell lines and process development for therapeutic antibody development. Through this announcement, it was confirmed that the antibody therapeutic candidates produced in large quantities can neutralize the virus in vitro. Currently, the Chinese partner Weiklon is conducting in vivo neutralization efficacy tests using a mouse disease model, and once efficacy is confirmed, plans to establish non-clinical and clinical development strategies in consultation with regulatory authorities of both countries.

SFTS, known as killer tick disease, is a high-fatality Class 3 legally designated infectious disease caused by bites from wild ticks infected with the virus. Recently, cases of secondary infection between animals or humans have also been reported, but there is still no vaccine or adequate treatment. Since the disease was first reported in China in 2009, about 8,000 people were infected from 2011 to 2016, with approximately 500 deaths. In Japan, about 500 patients occurred over 10 years until last year, with about 70 deaths. In Korea, counting began in 2013, and until last year, a total of 1,089 people were infected, with 214 deaths, showing the highest average fatality rate of 19.7% among the three countries.

Chinese company Weiklon possesses platform technology related to nanobody antibody development and is developing various antiviral antibodies. Recently, they selected antibody candidates confirmed to have neutralizing ability against COVID-19 virus and dengue virus and are discussing joint development plans with PanGen.

A PanGen official stated, “Since the therapeutic antibody candidates developed by Chinese Weiklon have confirmed virus neutralization effects even at large-scale production, we will strive to have the product released as soon as possible by obtaining designation under the expedited review system from regulatory authorities.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.