Constimulus Bio Completes Tens of Millions RMB Angel Financing to Advance Agonistic Antibody Drug Development

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) has learned that Zhongshan Hengdong Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (“Hengdong Biopharma”) recently announced the completion of its tens-of-millions-yuan angel financing round, led by Zhongshan Health Technology Industrial Base Investment Management Co., Ltd. and Tengye Venture Capital, with Zhongshan Qingyun as a participating investor.

Hengdong Biopharma, established in December 2021 in Zhongshan, Guangdong, is dedicated to developing agonistic antibody drugs with the potential to become first-in-class therapeutics, leveraging its advanced and proprietary core technology platform for the screening, optimization, and evaluation of agonistic antibodies. As a representative of next-generation agonistic “optimized monoclonal antibody” technology, Hengdong’s platform enables the development of agonistic antibodies that combine the structural format of monoclonal antibodies with the functional capabilities of bispecific antibodies. This approach not only achieves an order-of-magnitude enhancement in agonistic activity but also improves tumor tissue targeting. Hengdong Biopharma’s next-generation agonistic “optimized monoclonal antibody” technology provides the simplest, most natural, and IP-protective solution for agonistic antibody development. Currently, Hengdong Biopharma has built a diverse pipeline, with its most advanced candidate scheduled to file an Investigational New Drug (IND) application in 2023.

Dr. Li Fubin, Co-Founder and Chief Scientist of Hengdong BiopharmaceuticalHe stated, “Agonistic antibodies are a core strategy for precisely activating key signaling pathways of the body’s immune system, providing patients with ‘positive energy.’ In the field of cancer immunotherapy, agonistic antibodies complement immune checkpoint therapies and cell therapies, representing one of the most anticipated breakthroughs in modern medicine. Although the development of agonistic antibodies has progressed relatively slowly over the past two decades, the underlying rationale for their development is clear, and the primary challenges remaining are technical. Zhongshan Hengdong Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd. has pursued a path of source innovation. For more than ten years, our research has focused on how different structural modules of antibodies influence agonistic activity, leading to a new understanding of agonistic antibodies. Building on this foundation, we pioneered concepts and strategies for ‘optimizing’ agonistic antibodies and established next-generation optimization technologies. Zhongshan Hengdong Biopharmaceutical aims to achieve the leap from original technologies to original novel drugs. Realizing this vision would not be possible without our entrepreneurial partners. We extend our gratitude to Beijing Tengye Venture Capital Management Co., Ltd. and Zhongshan Health Technology Industrial Base Investment Management Co., Ltd. for their trust and support.”

Yan Xiaohua, Co-founder and CEO of Hengdong Biopharmastated: “The market prospects for agonistic antibodies are vast. Once breakthroughs are achieved, they can be used either as monotherapy or in combination with conventional treatments such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy, as well as emerging therapies including immune checkpoint inhibitors and cell therapies, to exert synergistic effects. They hold promise as ‘broad-spectrum anticancer drugs,’ potentially changing the treatment outcomes for various refractory solid tumors. This round of financing will accelerate Hengdong Biopharma’s R&D progress, supporting us in advancing our core pipeline into clinical trials more rapidly to benefit cancer patients worldwide. Starting from the Zhongshan National Health Base, Hengdong Biopharma is confident that, with the comprehensive empowerment from partners such as the Health Base, Tengye Venture Capital, and Haoyiyou, we will build an internationally competitive R&D platform in the field of agonistic antibody drugs and achieve groundbreaking ‘0 to 1’ innovations.”

Yang Quan, Head of Investment at Zhongshan Health Technology Industrial Base Investment Management Co., Ltd.“It is stated that agonist antibodies represent a highly promising frontier in tumor immunotherapy. As a leading enterprise in the research and development of agonist antibodies, Zhongshan Hengdong Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd. has assembled top-tier scientific talent in this field. Given the excellent preclinical performance of the company’s agonist antibody CS01, combined with the original research achievements made by its core team in the field of agonist antibodies, we believe that Hengdong Biopharmaceutical has the potential to become a leader in the development of agonist antibody drugs. The National Health Base is committed to strategically laying out and cultivating frontier directions in biopharmaceutical R&D, and looks forward to seeing Zhongshan Hengdong Biopharmaceutical grow into another ‘Akeso’ within the Health Base park.”

Gao Wei, Partner at Tengye Venture Capital“Tengye Venture Capital is delighted to become a startup partner of Hengdong Biopharmaceutical. With its unprecedented and outstanding efficacy, immunotherapy has quickly become a star in oncology treatment since its debut. In the post-PD-1 era, improving the response rate of immunotherapy has emerged as a critical challenge and a key focus for pharmaceutical companies of all sizes. Similar to immune checkpoint inhibitors, immune agonists activate the immune system and improve the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, holding promise for penetrating areas where current immune checkpoint inhibitors are ineffective, thereby benefiting more patients. The founders of Hengdong Biopharmaceutical have dedicated over a decade to the field of agonistic antibodies, establishing a proprietary and advanced antibody generation and screening platform whose research achievements have led the direction of agonistic antibody development. Globally, pharmaceutical companies have repeatedly advanced immune agonists into clinical trials, but this field remains in its early stages of development and accumulation. We are optimistic about Hengdong Biopharmaceutical’s strong R&D capabilities in this area, believing that by building on the ‘shoulders’ of past clinical data, the company will successfully reach the pinnacle of immune agonist development.”

Tengye Venture Capital focuses on early-stage investments in high-tech innovative enterprises. It manages seven funds and has invested in nearly 40 companies. Tengye Venture Capital boasts a professional investment management team with deep industry expertise, dedicated to identifying outstanding teams and startups with core technologies and product accumulations in emerging industries, while leveraging extensive industry resources to support corporate growth. Its investment sectors include biopharmaceuticals and healthcare, TMT (Technology, Media, and Telecom), new energy and environmental protection, as well as advanced manufacturing and high-end equipment. Notable portfolio companies in the healthcare sector include Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals, Liuhe Ningyuan, PackGene Biotech, Jiabao Renhe, Jinshi Biotechnology, Yudao Biotechnology, Ketu Medicine, Guangwei Pharma, Zhongjing Pukang, Saiqiao Biotechnology, Genetron Health, Aiqiao Medical, and Northland Biologics.

Zhongshan Health Technology Industrial Base Investment Management Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Health Base Investment Company”) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Zhongshan Health Base Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Health Base”) and serves as the fund manager for Zhongshan Torch Health Fund Management Center (Limited Partnership). Working in close coordination with its parent company, Health Base, the Health Base Investment Company has assembled a specialized financial services team to provide comprehensive support to sub-funds and their investment projects. The core management and operational team members of the Health Base Investment Company have many years of in-depth experience in the health industry, possessing professional judgment capabilities for health industry projects, extensive experience in investment promotion and asset management, as well as equity investment expertise. Since its establishment, the Health Base Investment Company has made outstanding contributions to Health Base’s industrial investment promotion and capital operations by participating in the formation of multiple sub-funds focused on the broader health industry and making direct investments in numerous high-quality investment promotion projects.

Hao You Yi is a comprehensive multinational healthcare industry group. It operates a leading cross-border medical platform in China and has co-established international medical centers with hundreds of domestic hospitals, creating a closed-loop cross-border healthcare service that integrates online remote consultations between China and the United States, offline treatment and follow-up, and precision oncology care. In the biopharmaceutical sector, Hao You Yi has invested in innovative drug projects such as Xunuo Pharmaceutical, Hengdong Biopharma, and Junrui Biopharma, further enhancing its healthcare ecosystem layout to benefit more cancer patients.