Mucosis Partners With Chinese Firm Changchun BCHT Biotechnology
Dutch biotechnology company Mucosis B.V. announced that it has entered into a strategic, long-term collaboration and license agreement with China-based Changchun BCHT Biotechnology Co (BCHT). Mucosis also reported that it has raised €5 million in a new financing round.
Under the terms of the new agreement, Mucosis will receive an equity investment along with customary payments. This includes royalties for the licensing of its SynGEM prefusion F vaccine candidate for prophylaxis of respiratory synctial virus (RSV). Mucosis’ Mimopath platform will also be licensed for other disease targets within the People’s Republic of China on an exclusive basis and non-exclusively in other countries within Asia.
Dr Kong, President of Changchun BCHT Biotechnology Co., said, “We are delighted to form this strategic partnership with Mucosis BV to advance the RSV SynGEM vaccine program and develop other vaccine candidates based on the validated Mimopath platform technology. I believe this business relationship between our two companies will strengthen our pipeline of new vaccine products.”
Changchun BCHT Biotechnology is a 600-person biopharmaceutical enterprise based in China and focused on R&D, production, and commercialization of vaccines, peptide drugs, and biologics.
Thomas Johnston, CEO of Mucosis, said, “We are pleased with BCHT joining a group of investors who share our confidence in the potential of our Mimopath technology and the proprietary SynGEM prefusion F RSV vaccine candidate. We believe that our Mimopath platform combined with BCHT's expertise in vaccine development creates a substantial opportunity in China and other parts of Asia to develop differentiated and medically relevant vaccines. We see this partnership as a further validation of our clinical-stage platform and its potential to combat infectious diseases.”
Aside from BCHT, Mucosis’ financing round was supported by the company’s current investors including BioGeneration Ventures, MedSciences Capital, and NV NOM (Investment and Development Agency for the Northern Netherlands).