Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. has announced that a joint research project between Chugai and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore (A*STAR) since 2015 for an anti-dengue virus antibody has been selected as a grant recipient by the Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT Fund) for the second time following 2017.

This project seeks to create a new antibody drug against the dengue virus through the collaboration between Chugai Pharmabody Research Pte. Ltd. (CPR), a research center of the Chugai Group in Singapore, and A*STAR’s Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN). The GHIT Fund again recognized that the project may contribute to “fight against neglected tropical diseases in developing countries,” and decided on the approximately US$4.4 million grant.

“We are thrilled to support further the development of antibody-based therapeutics by Chugai and A*STAR in order to combat the global burden of Dengue,” said Dr. BT Slingsby, the CEO of GHIT.

“Dengue remains an endemic threat in Singapore, and every year, our hospitals still see cases of serious and life-threatening disease caused by this virus,” said Dr. Benjamin Seet, Executive Director of A*STAR’s Biomedical Research Council. “Through our close partnership with Chugai and the support of the GHIT Fund, we are making good progress in developing an effective antibody against the virus. If we successfully bring this into the clinic, it will save many lives.”

“Chugai aims to contribute to solving social issues through innovation, centered on innovative new medicines,” said Motoo Ueno, Deputy Chairman of Chugai. “In order to improve health of people affected with neglected tropical diseases around the world, we will further proceed preclinical research with A*STAR, aiming to start clinical study as soon as possible.”

With a view to contributing to the healthcare and health of the people in the regions where the disease is rampant, which includes many developing countries, this project accelerates its efforts to establish treatment methods for dengue fever such as the early alleviation of the symptoms and prevention of lethal, severe cases of the disease.