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
iQmetrix Unveils Built-In Intelligence for Every Role in Telecom Commerce at Its 2026 Telecom Industry Address5.11.2026 23:39:00 EET | Press release
iQmetrix, the global provider of Intelligent Commerce Operating Systems for telecom, last week shared highlights from its 2026 Telecom Industry Address and Product Announcements, held virtually on Oct. 28 in two sessions, one for North American audiences and one for European audiences. The address was built around one theme: intelligence. Telecom commerce is moving from systems that record the business to systems that act on it, and the announcements put that intelligence in the hands of every role, from the sales associate at the counter, to the finance manager in the back office, to the corporate view leading the channel experience. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261105003162/en/ "Right now telecom providers are competing in a race to the bottom on price that no one wins. The way out is intelligence. Not AI bolted onto a fragmented tech stack, but intelligence built into how commerce runs. Information plus
Compass Pathways Announces New Employee Inducement Grants Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)5.11.2026 23:30:00 EET | Press release
Compass Pathways plc (Nasdaq: CMPS), a biotechnology company dedicated to unlocking urgently needed new treatment options in mental health care, announced today that Compass granted equity awards under the Compass Pathways plc 2026 Inducement Plan to nine newly hired non-executive employees. The equity awards were granted on November 2, 2026, and consisted of options to purchase an aggregate of 59,275 shares and restricted share units or, in the case of employees in the United Kingdom nominal cost options, covering an aggregate of 28,200 shares. These options have an exercise price per share equal to $8.41, the closing price of the Company’s American Depositary Shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on the grant date, and will vest over a four-year period with 25% vesting on the first anniversary of the date of the grant and the remaining 75% vesting in equal monthly installments over the three-year period thereafter, subject to each employee’s continued employment. The restricted s
Graco QUANTM i230 Brings Electrification to High-Flow Fluid-Transfer Applications5.11.2026 23:16:00 EET | Press release
Graco Inc. is helping manufacturers electrify high-flow fluid-transfer applications with the global launch of the 3-inch QUANTM® i230, bringing efficient electric drive technology to demanding processes that have traditionally relied on pneumatic pumps. Paint, coatings and ceramics manufacturers depend on diaphragm pumps for their flexibility, reliability and ability to handle challenging materials. But pneumatic pumps also depend on compressed air — an energy-intensive plant resource whose available capacity can fluctuate as demand changes across a facility. The QUANTM i230 gives manufacturers another option for qualified high-flow applications. By combining familiar diaphragm pump capabilities with electric operation, the pump helps manufacturers move more material, reduce transfer bottlenecks and lower energy consumption by up to 80% compared to pneumatic pumps, while maintaining operating flexibility. “High-flow processes in industries like paint, coatings and ceramics have continu
ThetaRay Named World’s Best Software Provider for AML and Sanctions Screening in the 2026 Euromoney Transaction Banking Awards5.11.2026 20:30:00 EET | Press release
ThetaRay, a global leader in AI-native financial crime compliance infrastructure, has been named The World’s Best Software Provider for AML and Sanctions Screening at the 2026 Euromoney Transaction Banking Awards. Evaluated by Euromoney’s editorial and research team, ThetaRay was recognized for technology excellence, verifiable performance, and advancing the modern transaction banking value chain. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261105714764/en/ The recognition reinforces ThetaRay’s standing as foundational compliance infrastructure for global institutions, closely following Chartis Research ranking ThetaRay #8 globally in the Financial Crime and Compliance50 (FCC50) 2026 report and naming the company a Category Winner for Explainable AI. “Our customers operate on the front lines against illicit networks exploiting the speed and scale of modern payment rails, which means defensive technology must meet and outp
Arthur D. Little: H1 2026 Private Capital Fundraising Strengthens While Market Sentiment Highlights Investor Shift to Europe over US and Asia5.11.2026 19:58:00 EET | Press release
Invest Europe, the association representing Europe’s private equity, venture capital and infrastructure sectors, as well as their investors, today released ‘Investing in Europe: Private Equity Activity H1 2026’ and ‘The Insight: State of the European Private Equity Industry 2026’, an annual market sentiment report published jointly with global management consultancy Arthur D. Little (ADL). Together, these show increased fundraising for European private equity and venture capital versus the same period last year, stronger investor allocation expectations for Europe, and declining appetite for the US and Asia. The sentiment report also demonstrates how AI is reshaping the industry and portfolio companies, while defence-related themes are topping GPs’ target investments. GPs (General Partners/fund managers of PE firms) and LPs (Limited Partners of PE firms/fund investors) are reacting and adapting to another year of geopolitical unpredictability and market volatility marked by Middle East
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