VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AbCellera (Nasdaq: ABCL) today announced Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) has entered into a purchase agreement with the U.S. government to supply up to 600,000 doses, for at least $720 million, of investigational drug bebtelovimab (LY-CoV1404), the second antibody developed through AbCellera’s collaboration with Lilly. The U.S. government will accept the doses of bebtelovimab if it is granted an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Lilly has submitted a request for an EUA for bebtelovimab for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 in certain high-risk patients to the FDA.
Details regarding Lilly's agreement to provide the U.S. government with up to 600,000 doses no later than March 31, 2022, with an option of 500,000 additional doses no later than July 31, 2022, can be found here.
Pseudovirus and authentic virus testing demonstrate that bebtelovimab retains full neutralizing activity against Omicron – currently the predominant variant in the U.S. In addition, pseudovirus testing with bebtelovimab demonstrates that it retains neutralization against all other known variants of interest and concern, including BA.2.
About AbCellera’s Response to COVID-19
AbCellera initially mobilized its pandemic response platform against COVID-19 in February of 2020, resulting in the discovery of bamlanivimab, the first monoclonal antibody therapy for COVID-19 to reach human testing and to be authorized for emergency use by the U.S. FDA. Bamlanivimab alone and together with other antibodies has treated at least 700,000 patients, preventing COVID-19-related hospitalizations and death.
AbCellera’s second monoclonal antibody for COVID-19, bebtelovimab, was developed to combat emerging variants. Pseudovirus and authentic virus testing confirmed bebtelovimab maintains binding and neutralizing activity across currently known and reported variants of concern. It is being studied for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 both as a monotherapy and together with other antibodies.
AbCellera’s efforts to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic have identified thousands of unique anti-SARS-CoV-2 human antibodies. These include bamlanivimab, bebtelovimab, and other antibodies that are in various stages of testing by AbCellera and its partners.
Bamlanivimab and betelovimab were developed from antibodies that were discovered using AbCellera’s pandemic response platform, in partnership with the Vaccine Research Center (VRC) at the National Institutes for Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). AbCellera’s partner, Lilly, is responsible for development, manufacturing, and distribution of bamlanivimab and betelovimab.
AbCellera’s pandemic response capabilities were developed over the past four years as part of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Pandemic Prevention Platform (P3) program. The goal of the P3 program is to establish a robust technology platform for pandemic response capable of developing field-ready medical countermeasures within 60 days of isolation of an unknown viral pathogen.
About AbCellera Biologics Inc.
AbCellera is a technology company that searches, decodes, and analyzes natural immune systems to find antibodies that its partners can develop into drugs to prevent and treat disease. AbCellera partners with drug developers of all sizes, from large pharmaceutical to small biotechnology companies, empowering them to move quickly, reduce cost, and tackle the toughest problems in drug development. For more information, please visit www.abcellera.com.
AbCellera Forward-looking Statements
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Source: AbCellera Biologics Inc.
