China-based Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals has entered into a global licensing agreement with Merck for the use of Biocytogen’s RenMice platform.

Under the terms of the agreement, Merck will have full access to Biocytogen’s RenMice platform to discover and develop fully human antibody therapeutics for an unlimited number of drug targets.

Merck will be responsible for all clinical development, manufacturing, and commercialization, and will provide Biocytogen with development and regulatory milestone payments. The official agreement was reached after an initial evaluation period.

Dr Yuelei Shen, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Biocytogen, said, “This agreement provides Merck with one of the most advanced fully human antibody discovery platforms.”

Biocytogen’s RenMice HiTS Platform aims to develop novel antibody drugs with first-in-class and/or best-in-class potential for more than 1000 targets, and has resulted in collaborations with dozens of partners worldwide.