UCB has teamed up with the UK’s Medical Research Council (MRC) to support academic researchers in their work to develop a portfolio built on antibody therapeutics.
The pharma firm will offer technology access to scientists, with the MRC funding up to five monoclonal antibody projects a year.
Neil Weir, head of discovery research at UCB, said: “UCB is committed to increasing our collaborative networks to accelerate scientific discovery.
“We want to facilitate industry-academic interaction to generate potential therapeutics to benefit patients suffering with severe diseases.
“This joint initiative with the MRC is a world-leading collaboration between academia and industry with the aim of enhancing the pace of new drug discovery and improving patient outcomes.”
UCB will provide access to its novel antibody discovery technology, allowing researchers to sample large numbers of antibodies to assess if they are suitable for the research or treatment of human diseases.
Chris Watkins, director of innovation at the MRC, said: “We are really excited to have negotiated this industry-leading collaboration that brings together the best UK-based scientists with the best technology in UK-based industry.
“Through access to UCB’s state of the art technology we are hoping that this collaboration will enable scientists to deepen their understanding of disease, identify new therapeutic targets and kick-start the search for new medicines.”
Since the first approval of a therapeutic monoclonal antibody over 30 years ago, antibodies have become key therapies in a range of disease areas including autoimmune conditions, infections and cancer.