Diversa and Merck Expand Collaboration to Develop Novel Therapeutic Antibodies
SAN DIEGO, June 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Diversa Corporation (Nasdaq: DVSA - News) announced today that it has expanded its existing agreement with Merck & Co., Inc. for the development of novel therapeutic antibodies. Under the terms of the expanded agreement, Diversa will receive an additional upfront payment and research funding, and will be entitled to receive milestones based on successful development of antibody candidates and royalties on sales of products developed under the collaboration. In January, the two companies announced their initial antibody development agreement to apply Diversa's MedEv(TM) antibody evolution platform in a joint development program.
"Based upon the progress of our initial program, we are pleased to expand our collaboration with Diversa," said John Shiver, Ph.D., Vice President, Vaccine and Biologics Research at Merck. "Diversa's antibody optimization technologies are aligned with our overall mission of empowering cutting edge pharmaceutical research to develop market-leading products."
"Diversa's proprietary protein evolution technologies have a unique capability for evolving novel functionality in antibodies. We are enthusiastic about expanding our relationship with Merck and applying our integrated platform for developing next-generation biotherapeutic agents," said Dr. Jay M. Short, Diversa's President and Chief Executive Officer.
About Diversa's MedEv(TM) Platform
Two protein evolution technology platforms patented by Diversa comprise the MedEv(TM) antibody optimization platform: Gene Site Saturation Mutagenesis(TM) (GSSM(TM)) and GeneReassembly(TM) technologies. Combined with high-throughput screening, these patented techniques yield a complete picture of the detailed functional behavior of every variant derived from a candidate antibody.
About Diversa
Diversa Corporation is a leader in applying proprietary genomic technologies for the rapid discovery and optimization of novel protein-based products. The Company is directing its integrated portfolio of technologies to the discovery, evolution, and production of commercially valuable molecules with agricultural, chemical, industrial, and pharmaceutical applications. Diversa has established alliances and joint ventures with market leaders, such as Bayer Animal Health, Cargill Health and Food Technologies, DuPont Bio-Based Materials, GlaxoSmithKline, Medarex, Merck, and Xoma. In addition, the Company has formed a broad strategic relationship with Syngenta AG, a world- leading agribusiness company. Diversa has commercialized products both independently and in collaboration with strategic partners and licensees. Additional information is available at Diversa's website: www.diversa.com... |
