Biocytogen Launches “Nano 100 Project” to Develop Fully Human Nanobody Therapeutics for Over 100 Targets
21.2.2023 17:11:00 EET | Business Wire | Press release
Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) Co., Ltd. ("Biocytogen", HKEX: 02315) today announced the launch of the “Nano 100 Project”, which aims to develop fully human nanobody drugs for over 100 targets. The Project combines Biocytogen’s proprietary fully human nanobody mouse, RenNano®, with its high-throughput in vitro and in vivo antibody screening platforms to develop fully human nanobody drugs on a large-scale.
Compared to traditional antibodies, nanobodies have smaller molecular weights and improved tissue penetration ability, which make them effective at infiltrating tumors and crossing blood-brain barriers. Additionally, nanobodies generally have longer CDR3 regions which enables them to recognize hidden epitopes better. Due to their simpler structure, nanobodies are more stable and easier to produce and engineer, making them ideal building blocks for complex modalities such as cell therapy, bispecific antibody and engager, multi-specific antibody, antibody drug-conjugate (ADC), and radionuclide antibody-conjugate (RAC).
After several years of endeavor, Biocytogen successfully engineered the RenNano mouse from its fully human antibody mouse, RenMab™. RenNano mouse possesses full human heavy chain variable regions and can produce heavy-chain-only antibodies (HCAbs). The variable regions of HCAbs, i.e., nanobodies, do not require in vitro humanization to develop drugs. Our research has shown that RenNano mouse can generate robust immune responses after immunizations by different antigens. HCAbs generated from the RenNano mouse have highly diverse CDR3 sequences and can recognize many epitopes with nM-level high affinities. In vitro and in vivo experiments have shown that RenNano-derived antibodies have favorable biological functions.
Based on RenNano’s excellent ability to discover fully human nanobodies, Biocytogen has launched the “Nano 100 Project”. The Project aims to develop fully human therapeutic nanobodies against over 100 targets, including tumor associated antigens (TAAs), GPCRs, immune-checkpoints, cytokines, and factors related to neurological diseases. Biocytogen is actively seeking collaborations with global pharmaceutical and biotech companies to combine its large-scale nanobody development abilities with collaborators’ expertise in nanobody-related therapeutics, such as cell therapies, bispecific and multi-specific antibodies, ADCs and RACs, to develop novel drugs with first-in-class and/or best-in-class potentials.
“We believe that with the ability to rapidly develop fully human nanobodies against selected targets, the ‘Nano 100 Project’ will provide our global partners with more diverse and better nanobody building blocks to accelerate the development of novel drugs,” said Dr. Yuelei Shen, President and CEO of Biocytogen. “Meanwhile, it is also an important supplement to Biocytogen’s Project Integrum.”
About RenNano®
Biocytogen's proprietary fully human nanobody generating mouse, RenNano, is one of the most comprehensive fully human antibody platforms in the world. Nanobody sequences generated from RenNano mice have the highest possible diversity and do not require antibody humanization, which saves time and cost and reduces the risk of failure during later stages of drug development. Additionally, compared to natural HCAb-producing species like camelids, mice are easier to breed and immunize, making them suitable for developing HCAbs on a large scale.
About Biocytogen
Biocytogen (HKEX: 02315) is a global biotechnology company that drives the research and development of novel antibody-based drugs with innovative technologies. Using its proprietary RenMab™/RenLite®/RenNano® mice platforms for fully human monoclonal antibody, bispecific/multispecific antibody and nanobody development, Biocytogen has integrated its in vivo drug efficacy screening platforms and strong clinical development expertise to streamline the entire drug development process. Biocytogen is undertaking a large-scale project to develop first-in-class and/or best-in-class antibody drugs for more than 1000 targets, known as Project Integrum. This project has resulted in 28 drug co-development agreements and 16 RenMice™ licensing agreements with companies around the world, including several partnerships with multinational pharmaceutical companies (MNCs). Biocytogen's pipeline includes 12 core products, among which two products are in phase II multi-regional clinical trials and two products are in phase I. Headquartered in Beijing, Biocytogen has branches in Haimen Jiangsu, Shanghai, Boston, USA and Heidelberg, Germany. For more information, please visit http://en.biocytogen.com.cn.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230221005554/en/
Contact information
Biocytogen
Antibody platforms and antibody assets: BD-Licensing@biocytogen.com
Media: pr@bbctg.com.cn
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
HAZAMA ANDO Becomes an Official Partner in Helical Fusion’s Commercial Fusion Initiative and Signs MoU Toward Construction of the Fusion Pilot Plant6.7.2026 09:40:00 EEST | Press release
Helical Fusion Co., Ltd. (“Helical Fusion”), a Japan-based fusion energy startup developing fusion power plants, and HAZAMA ANDO CORPORATION (“HAZAMA ANDO”), a long-established Japanese general contractor, today announced that HAZAMA ANDO has become an Official Partner in the Helix Program, Helical Fusion’s commercial fusion initiative. The two companies have also signed a memorandum of understanding (“MoU”) to collaborate toward the construction of Helix KANATA, Helical Fusion’s Fusion Pilot Plant targeted for the 2030s. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260706176052/en/ (L-R) Kazuhiko Kuniya (Representative Director and President, HAZAMA ANDO CORPORATION) and Takaya Taguchi (Co-Founder and CEO, Helical Fusion Co., Ltd.) at a press conference in Tokyo on July 6, 2026. Fusion energy has the potential to shift the foundation of energy from natural resources to advanced technology by reproducing, on Earth, the sam
Sofinnova Partners Announces Myricx Bio Agrees to Be Acquired by Novartis6.7.2026 08:15:00 EEST | Press release
Sofinnova Partners, a leading European life sciences venture capital firm, today announced that its portfolio company Myricx Bio (“Myricx”) has reached agreement to be acquired by Novartis, for up to $1.5 billion including $1.1 billion cash upfront plus potential milestone payments. This marks Sofinnova Partners' seventh exit in three years. Myricx Bio is a UK-headquartered transatlantic biotech company focused on the discovery and development of a novel class of payloads for antibody-drug conjugates. The company's platform is built around next-generation N-myristoyltransferase inhibitor (NMTi) payloads, a differentiated mechanism of action designed to address the narrow therapeutic windows and tolerability challenges that have limited earlier generations of ADCs, such as TOPO-1 and tubulin inhibitor payload classes. Myricx Bio's two lead ADC assets, directed towards the established targets B7-H3 and HER2, are designed to bring this differentiated approach to patients across a broad ra
Global New Material International Wins Technology Innovation Best Practice Award at Sino-European ESG Conference6.7.2026 06:59:00 EEST | Press release
Global New Material International Holdings Ltd. has received the Technology Innovation Best Practice Award at the Third Sino-European Corporate ESG Best Practice Conference recently in Mainz, Germany, in recognition of its efforts to advance sustainable development through material innovation. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260705533555/en/ Thorsten Giehler (L), Director of the Economic, Social Development and Employment Division of The German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), delivered the award to Zhou Fangchao, Executive Director and Vice President of Global New Material International. The annual conference, initiated by the Chinese Consulate General in Frankfurt and jointly organized with Chinese and European partners, recognizes corporate best practices in environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. This year's event brought together government officials, business leaders and exper
Access Advance Welcomes Samsung and Sharp to the VVC Advance Patent Pool6.7.2026 03:00:00 EEST | Press release
Access Advance LLC today announced significant additions to the VVC Advance Patent Pool, including Samsung Electronics and Sharp Corporation joining as both Licensors and Licensees. The additions strengthen Access Advance's position in VVC licensing, bringing two of the world's largest video codec patent holders into the program on both sides of the license. "The growth we are seeing in VVC Advance reflects the broad range of industries and companies that are moving toward VVC as the next standard for video delivery," said Peter Moller, CEO of Access Advance. "Samsung and Sharp joining as both Licensors and Licensees is significant, but so is the participation of leading smartphone brands and the range of consumer electronics and technology companies now executing licenses. We are building a program that reflects where the video market is actually heading." The following companies have joined the VVC Advance Patent Pool as Licensees since the beginning of 2026: American Future Technolo
Kioxia and Sandisk Begin Production of 10th-Generation 3D Flash Memory Products at Kitakami Plant Fab23.7.2026 13:19:00 EEST | Press release
Kioxia Corporation, a subsidiary of Kioxia Holdings Corporation (TOKYO: 285A) and Sandisk Corporation (Nasdaq: SNDK) today announced the start of production for their 10th-generation 3D Flash memory technology at Fab2 (K2) at the Kitakami Plant in Iwate Prefecture in Japan. The milestone comes as the companies continue to drive meaningful, multi-year bit growth to address the strong demand for their innovative flash memory technology. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260702296115/en/ Unveiling ceremony for the K2 facility In conjunction with the start of production, the companies held an unveiling ceremony for the K2 facility. Opening in September 2025, the facility has produced the companies’ 8th-generation 3D flash memory products and will begin to scale production with the introduction of their 10th-generation products. Both generations of 3D flash memory adopt innovative CBA (CMOS directly Bonded to Array)
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom