SHANGHAI, Sept. 15, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- ShangPharma Corporation (SHP.NYSE) ("ShangPharma" or the "Company"), a leading China-based pharmaceutical and biotechnology research and development outsourcing company, and Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine Co., Ltd. ("Hengrui"), a leading Chinese pharmaceutical company, today announced that Shanghai ChemPartner ("ChemPartner"), a wholly owned subsidiary of ShangPharma, and Hengrui have entered into a strategic partnership for the development of novel therapeutic monoclonal antibodies ("mAbs").
Through the partnership, ChemPartner and Hengrui will initially collaborate on the development of novel therapeutic mAbs in a major therapeutic area. ChemPartner will head pre-clinical research activities, including target protein preparation and assay system establishment, generation and optimization of lead antibodies, as well as pharmacokinetic and preformulation studies, while Hengrui will lead drug development for the mAb. Following the project's completion, Hengrui will retain the intellectual property rights of the mAb and any patents related to the mAb's development. The first program will have several preclinical and development milestone payments, as well as a timeline-based incentive payment.
Mr. Michael Xin Hui, chairman and chief executive officer of ShangPharma, commented, "Hengrui is the first major domestic pharmaceutical company to form such an antibody partnership with ChemPartner, and the program is the first of its kind in China. The indication and market potential for the first mAb is very broad. We are proud to be working with Hengrui, one of the major domestic pharmaceutical companies. We expect our collaborative work will lead to further domestic and multinational partnerships in biologics development, and pave the way for innovation and growth in China's own biotechnology industry."
Dr. Lianshan Zhang, Hengrui's President of Global R&D, added, "Hengrui, as a domestic leader in innovative medicines, recognizes the importance of external discovery capability, especially in the area of biotherapeutics. We are pleased to be working with one of the leading CRO companies in China. Hengrui has chosen to partner with ShangPharma and its ChemPartner subsidiary for their exceptional capabilities and platform in biologics R&D, and we will work together toward a successful partnership."
About Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine Co., Ltd.
Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine Co., Ltd., established in 1970, is a fully integrated pharmaceutical company in China, with net sales of about US$550 million in 2010. The company has been experiencing organic growth at an annual rate of 25% in the past few years. It is recognized as the top innovative home-grown drug company, with over a dozen of new molecular entities in clinical trials and dozens more under pre-clinical development. Hengrui's products and R&D span over multiple therapeutic areas, such as oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, CNS, inflammation, hematology and anesthesiology. For more information, please visit http://www.hrs.com.cn/.
About Shanghai ChemPartner
Founded in 2003, Shanghai ChemPartner (ChemPartner) is one of the leading contract research organizations providing medicinal chemistry, discovery biology, pharmacology, DMPK, toxicology, process R&D, analytical development, formulation and contract manufacturing services to over 120 pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the world. ChemPartner currently has a team of over 1,000 scientists including more than 100 senior scientific leaders with extensive industry experiences gained from leading global pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Headquartered in China, ChemPartner has overseas business development operations in Boston, USA and Copenhagen, Denmark. For more information, please visit www.chempartner.cn.
About ShangPharma Corporation
ShangPharma Corporation is a leading China-based contract research organization providing high-quality and cost-effective services for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. It offers a broad range of high-quality, integrated services across the drug discovery and development process to help international and Chinese pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel drug candidates efficiently. ShangPharma's services consist of discovery chemistry, discovery biology and preclinical development, pharmaceutical development and biologics services. For more information, please visit www.shangpharma.com.
For further information, please contact:
ShangPharma Corporation
In Shanghai, China
Ms. Lan Xie
VP of Finance and Investor Relations
Email: IR@shangpharma.com
Christensen
In New York:
Kimberly Minarovich
Tel: +1 917-533-3268
Email: kminarovich@christensenir.com
In Hong Kong:
Tip Fleming
Tel: +852-9212-0684
Email: tfleming@christensenir.com
SOURCE ShangPharma Corporation