Huadong Medicine Acquires 75% Stake in Doer Biologics for RMB 487.5 Million to Strengthen Antibody Drug Pipeline

On April 27, Huadong Medicine announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Hangzhou Zhongmei Huadong, acquired a 75% equity stake in Doer Biologics from the transferors for RMB 487.5 million, thereby becoming the largest shareholder of Doer Biologics.

Doer Biologics is a platform-based R&D enterprise engaged in the development of innovative biologic macromolecule antibody drugs, possessing independent intellectual property rights. The company owns multiple proprietary platform technologies in protein engineering, antibody engineering, and peptide design, including xLONGylation® recombinant PEG-like modification, MultipleBody® multi-target technology platform, AccuBody® tumor precision therapy technology platform, and the HTS-VHHBody high-throughput discovery and engineering platform for nanobodies. Focusing on oncology, metabolism, ophthalmology, and other therapeutic areas, Doer Biologics has developed multiple innovative multi-domain, multispecific protein and antibody therapeutics.

Doer Biologics Platform

Doer Biologics currently has six key innovative products under development that have demonstrated favorable in vivo and in vitro efficacy in preclinical studies.

Doer Biologics: 6 Key Innovative Products in Development

In the oncology field, the new drug pipeline has developed monoclonal antibodies, bispecific antibodies, and trispecific antibodies targeting CLDN18.2, PD-L1, and other targets. Representative new drug projects include DR30303, DR30206, and DR30318. Among these, DR30303 has largely completed preclinical studies and is planned to apply for clinical trials within 2021.

In the metabolic disease sector, the new drug pipeline strategically focuses on dual- and triple-target therapies based on GLP-1R, GIPR, and FGF21R targets, including DR10624 (a GLP-1R/GCGR/FGFR1c-β Klotho tri-specific agonist), DR10627 (a GLP-1R/GIPR dual-specific agonist, rapid-acting daily formulation), and DR10628 (a GLP-1R/GIPR dual-specific agonist, long-acting weekly formulation). IND applications for DR10624 and DR10627 are planned for submission within 2021.

In addition to the six key R&D projects mentioned above, multiple innovative candidate active molecules have been successfully identified and designed based on the four major technology platforms, with further development to follow.

Doer Biologics boasts a robust pipeline of products under development and holds independent intellectual property rights as well as global rights to all its products. The company focuses on the research and development of drugs in the fields of oncology and metabolism, which aligns closely with the key strategic areas prioritized by Huadong Medicine. Doer Biologics’ team has extensive experience in the development of antibodies, fusion proteins, and peptide drugs for oncology and metabolic disorders. Its portfolio of differentiated, multi-domain-based multispecific products demonstrates significant clinical value and promising application prospects.

The strategic cooperation with Doer Biologics through equity acquisition represents another significant strategic layout for Huadong Medicine in the biopharmaceutical sector. This move aligns with the company’s strategic development needs for internationalization and a transition towards research-driven innovation, holding substantial strategic significance. The transaction further enriches Huadong Medicine’s R&D pipeline in the biopharmaceutical field, covering monoclonal antibodies, bispecific/multispecific antibodies, fusion proteins, and peptides, while strengthening its R&D capabilities in the antibody domain, particularly in early-stage drug discovery.

Upon completion of the transaction, Doer Biologics will become a key biopharmaceutical R&D platform for Huadong Medicine. Leveraging its four proprietary technology platforms—including the alpaca single-domain antibody screening and engineering platform and the long-acting biologic drug engineering platform—Doer Biologics will continuously develop differentiated and advanced antibodies, fusion proteins, and peptide drugs, thereby providing sustained new momentum to enrich Huadong Medicine’s innovative product pipeline.