Launches of Neomabs Biotechnologies, a Company Dedicated to Developing New Immunotherapies For Cancer Treatment

Developing new generations of immunotherapies to treat currently incurable pediatric leukemia: this is the mission of Neomabs Biotechnologies, a new Montreal-based biotechnology company specializing in the discovery and development of innovative oncology therapies.

The creation of Neomabs, the result of a strategic and innovative partnership between key players in the life sciences ecosystem, was made possible thanks to a $2M pre-seed funding initiative led by Theodorus, a venture capital fund dedicated to early-stage investments in the life sciences, with the participation of Fonds d’investissement Eurêka, a venture capital fund managed and administered by Investissement Québec. Neomabs also has partnerships with CQDM, a biopharmaceutical research consortium, Immune Biosolutions and the CHU Sainte-Justine Research Centre.

Neomabs Biotechnologies is developing therapeutic antibodies against novel targets, called neoantigens, for acute pediatric leukemia. The mortality rate for children affected by pediatric leukemia is currently twenty to thirty percent. The discovery of these neoantigens was made possible thanks to the expertise of researcher Étienne Caron, his associate Isabelle Sirois, and hematologist and clinician-researcher Dr. Sonia Cellot, at CHU Sainte-Justine. This combined expertise provided the basis for the is the source of the antibodyies developmented by Neomabs.

Neomabs Biotechnologies has signed an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement for the neoantigens identified at the CHU Saint-Justine Research Centre with Axelys, an organization that focuses on the development and transfer of innovations stemming from public research in Quebec and the CHU Sainte-Justine's partner in managing its intellectual property assets.

BCF is proud to have acted on behalf of Theodorus in this transaction with a team composed of Annie Gauthier, Alessia Talarico and Gabriel Melançon (Financing and Commercial Law), Andréanne Auger (Intellectual Property) and Emilia Stoute (Corporate Services).

To read the press release, click here (in French only).