US based Mount Sinai Health System and US-China based Harbour BioMed (HBM) have entered into a multi-year, multifaceted collaboration to develop novel, fully human antibodies for the treatment and prevention of various diseases including oncology and immunology.

The collaboration will also utilize the H2L2 Harbour Mice^® platform to generate monoclonal antibodies against the coronavirus SARS CoV 2 – COVID-19 (commonly known as COVID-19).

These fully human monoclonal antibodies could be used therapeutically for people who have been exposed to the virus, or prophylactically for individuals with a high risk of exposure, such as healthcare workers. The antibodies have the potential to prevent spread of the virus by blocking infection of cells.

"We are pleased to be able to collaborate with HBM at this time and leverage our experience in therapeutic antibody generation as well as the viral expertise of the Microbiology Department with the unique human antibody producing mice from Harbour,” said Professor Thomas Moran, PhD, Director, Center for Therapeutic Antibody Development (CTAD) at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.