Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (Biocytogen) has announced that it has entered into an evaluation as well as option agreement with Merck to grant them a sole license to evaluate Biocytogen’s proprietary antibodies against at least three distinct targets with an option to acquire some of the assets at a later date for therapeutic product development for all uses worldwide.

Under the agreement, Biocytogen will provide Merck antibodies directed against at least three targets specified by them from Biocytogen’s Project Integrum (also called HiTS Platform), which are generated by leveraging Biocytogen’s proprietary RenMice Platform. Merck will carry out feasibility tests and be responsible for

further development and commercialization of the products if exercising an option. Additional targets subject to mutual discretion may be included under this agreement.

Dr. Yuelei Shen, president and CEO of Biocytogen, said: “Thanks to Merck’s recognition of our proprietary platform and antibody discovery capabilities, we believe that differentiated candidates generated from our innovative models and discovery platform can quickly advance novel antibody-based therapeutics. Our RenMice-based Project Integrum aims to discover antibodies against more than 1,000 targets. We welcome collaboration with partners worldwide to realize the full potential of this platform.”

Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) Co., Ltd. is a global biotech company that drives the research and development of new drugs with innovative technologies. The company is committed to becoming a global headstream of new drugs to bring benefits to patients worldwide.

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across healthcare, life science and electronics.