IMBiologics transfers autoimmune disease drug tech to Huadong Pharma

South Korea's antibody-based biotech company IMBiologics announced on Friday that it signed a contract to transfer the technology of its autoimmune disease treatment candidate to China's Huadong Pharmaceutical.

The contract includes an upfront payment of $8 million, with potential milestone payments of up to $375 million.

The substances being transferred by IMBiologics include two candidates: a bispecific antibody candidate IMB-101, which targets both the autoimmune disease antibody OX40L and tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and a monospecific antibody IMB-102, which targets OX40L only.

These substances were jointly developed by three domestic companies: IMBiologics, HK inno.N and Y Biologics.

Under the contract, Huadong Pharmaceutical will have the rights to develop and commercialize these candidate substances in Asia, excluding South Korea, North Korea, and Japan.

Huadong Pharmaceutical, one of China's top-10 pharmaceutical companies, is a subsidiary of Huadong Medicine Co., Ltd. IMBiologics stated that the company is currently developing antibodies for immune disorders, biosimilars, and other products as part of its major pipeline.

In June, IMBiologics also signed a contract to transfer the technology of IMB-101 and IMB-102 to US-based drug developer Navigator Medicines. That contract was valued at a total of $944.8 million, including an upfront payment.

Write to Yoo-Rim Kim at youforest@hankyung.com