Vaccinex
believes that the ACTIVMAb® technology is one of the most advanced
for generating monoclonal antibodies against difficult immune targets,
which include highly conserved proteins and multi-pass membrane receptors.
Vaccinex’s strategy is to leverage the capabilities of our ACTIVMAb®
antibody technology to develop a pipeline of therapeutic antibody products,
while utilizing the near-term revenues from antibody collaborations to
help support our operating costs.
Key
components of our business strategy include the following:
Identification
of Attractive Antibody Targets. Using our ACTIVMAb® technology,
Vaccinex has the ability to discover promising immune targets, such
as our proprietary breast cancer target, C35. In addition, we are
accelerating our development efforts by in-licensing validated or
partially validated targets from partners.
Generation
and Evaluation of Fully Human Antibodies. Vaccinex’s
antibody technology provides the potential to generate fully human
antibodies that may form the basis for therapeutic products. As described
above, Vaccinex’s ACTIVMAb® technology offers one of the
only means of generating complete, fully functional antibodies against
a broad range of target antigens. These capabilities are important
as they may allow Vaccinex to select antibodies against targets that
cannot be addressed by others and to directly incorporate functional
assays in the antibody selection process. Importantly, our in-house
discovery capabilities eliminate the need to pay fees or royalties
to other firms for antibody discovery.
Initiation
of Clinical Development: Building on the expertise of its
current management team and advisors, Vaccinex intends to perform
proof of concept studies to validate the scientific potential of each
antibody product prior to development. We have built a core development
team and engaged experienced consultants to enhance our clinical development
capabilities.
Corporate
Collaborations and Client Services: Because few companies
have the ability to generate fully human antibodies, Vaccinex can
leverage its ACTIVMAb® technology by assisting others in discovering
novel therapeutic antibodies. Corporate partners provide Vaccinex
with their target antigen and Vaccinex uses its ACTIVMAb® technology
to select one or more fully human monoclonal antibodies that are specific
to the target. Vaccinex can license the antibodies discovered to our
partners in exchange for upfront and milestone fees and royalties
on product sales. In addition, on a selected basis, Vaccinex is establishing
collaborations structured as co-development partnerships where we
will share in product development responsibilities and revenues.
Quality:
The industry to which Vaccinex provides research services
and with which it establishes co-development partnerships places considerable
emphasis on quality and regulatory compliance. The company’s
management is committed to providing services and fulfilling co-development
obligations which meet all client and partner requirements. The company’s
management is also committed to developing and commercializing its
pipeline of biopharmaceutical and diagnostic products in compliance
with internal quality policies and standards, as well as with applicable
government regulatory requirements. Accordingly, Vaccinex has established
and maintains a documented Quality Management System (QMS) to ensure
the highest level of quality of services and products.