Oncimmune Holdings PLC (LON:ONC) shares rose 10% after said it has signed an agreement with an unnamed “leading US biopharmaceutical company” helping the latter develop new immunotherapies.
The UK group will support its new partner with antigen targeting using its biomarker discovery engine, SeroTag. The technology will be deployed to identify antigen targets from human immunoglobulin antibodies.
Oncimmune said its approach helped address challenges currently hindering the broader application of both cancer immunotherapies and treatments for autoimmune diseases.
This agreement allows the firm, or a commercial partner, to develop a companion diagnostic for each candidate that is validated.
In a statement, Oncimmune's chief executive Adam Hill said the latest deal was part of a growing pipeline of commercial projects flagged in the company’s February results statement.
He added that the collaboration agreement both validated last year's acquisition of Oncimmune Germany - previously called Protagen Diagnostics AG.
And, importantly, it moved the firm’s commercial proposition beyond early cancer detection and into supporting the process of drug development.
“Antigen targeting has always been a focus of our three-year forward strategy, and I am now delighted to see our platform used in this endeavour," he explained.
The stock rose 7.7p to 87.7p in morning trade.
---ADDS SHARE PRICE---