Singlomics Has Completed the First Round of Financing of Nearly RMB 100 Million and Uses the Single-cell Sequencing Technology to Drive New Drug Development

Singlomics Biopharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Singlomics) recently announced that it has completed the first round of financing of nearly RMB 100 million. This round of financing was jointly led by GL Ventures and Huagai Healthcare, with BCSPD, BSTIG, Tianjin Huizhi and BOHE Angel Fund being the    co-investors. The funds raised will be mainly used in advancing the company’s  world-leading single-cell sequencing technology, spearheading the clinical development of neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 currently in pipeline and further expanding the company’s drug candidates portfolio.

 

Singlomics, established in 2020, is committed to using single-cell sequencing technology platforms to research and develop antibody drugs, and to promoting the discovery of innovative medicine for the treatment of infectious and autoimmune diseases. In August, it reached an exclusive license agreement with BeiGene on the worldwide development, production and commercial rights of its first products, neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 (DXP593 and DXP604) outside Greater China. Singlomics will also work with the Changping District Government to build an antibody drug production base and so contribute to developing an innovative biopharmaceutical industry in Beijing.

 

 

Singlomics was co-founded by Professor Xiaoliang Xie, member of four National Academies in both China and USA, and two of his students, Dr. Xu Zhang and Dr. Yunlong Cao

 

Academician Xiaoliang Xie, Co-founder & Chief Scientific Advisor of Singlomics

 

Dr. Xiaoliang Xie, the Co-founder and Chief Scientific Advisor of Singlomics, is an internationally renowned biophysical chemist. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Medicine, a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a foreign member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He was Mallinckrodt Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University until 2018. He returned to China on that year to continue his distinguished career in scientific research and education, and has taken on several fulltime positions since then. He is now the Lee Shau-kee Chair Professor of Peking University, and also the Director of Biomedical Pioneering Innovation Center and Director of Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Genomics, both at Peking University. 

Immediately after the outbreak of COVID-19, he organized an outstanding multidisciplinary team with members from universities and industry to tackle this critical challenge. His team successfully applied single-cell genomics to the screening of neutralizing antibodies from humans for the first time, and rapidly obtained highly active neutralizing antibodies which are expected to provide a distinctly efficacious treatment for COVID-19.

 

 

Co-founder & CEO, Dr. Xu Zhang

 
 

 

Dr. Xu Zhang, Co-founder and CEO of Singlomics, holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Tokyo and PhD from the Department of Applied Physics/Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University. During her time in Harvard, she served as President of the Harvard Chinese Students and Scholars Association. At Harvard, she studied under Dr. Xiaoliang Xie, specializing in    single-cell DNA/RNA sequencing and functional genomics. After the COVID-19 outbreak, she became a core member of the multidisciplinary team organized by Dr. Xie for the research and development of highly active neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19, and was a key contributor to several critical patents derived from this work. Dr. Zhang has been actively involved in industrialization, innovation and entrepreneurship in biopharmaceutical industry for many years. She has worked for McKinsey, the world's well-known strategic management consulting company. Further, she has extensive management consulting experience in major biomedical markets such as China, USA, Japan and Europe, and has formulated commercial strategies, optimized product pipeline configuration and improved operational efficiency for many famous multinational pharmaceutical companies.

 

 

Co-founder & Scientific Advisor, Dr. Yunlong Cao

 

 

Dr. Yunlong Cao undertook undergraduate study at the Department of Physics, Zhejiang University. After receiving his Bachelor's degree, he was admitted in a PhD program at the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, studying under Dr. Xiaoliang Xie. Having received his doctorate with distinction, he is now an Associate Professor at the Biomedical Pioneering Innovation Center, Peking University. His research is focused on developing and advancing single-cell sequencing technology. He is a scientific leader of the multidisciplinary team organized by Dr. Xie for the research and development of highly active neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19, directing from experimental design to implementation. This work was recently published in a critically acclaimed article in the biological journal, Cell, of which Dr. Cao is the first author. He is also the lead inventor of several critical patents in this field.

 

 

The First Drugs (Neutralizing Antibodies Against SARS-CoV-2) Developed Independently by Singlomics will Enter the Clinical Stage

 

With the full support of the People's Government of Beijing Municipality and the Beijing Municipal Science & Technology Commission, following the COVID-19 outbreak, Dr. Xiaoliang Xie's research team at Peking University adopted the high-throughput      single-cell sequencing technique which had been perfected by the group for many years to screen a number of highly potent neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 from the memory B cells of more than 60 convalescent COVID-19 patients, in conjunction with multiple partners including Beijing You’an Hospital and the Institute of Laboratory Animal Sciences, CAMS. Peking University has then granted the related patents derived from this work exclusively to Singlomics.

 

 Singlomics is currently focusing on promoting the industrializations of two lead antibodies, DXP593 and DXP604, from preclinical research, manufacturing to clinical development. One lead candidate, DXP593, showed strong neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2 pseudoviruses and live viruses, with half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) measured as 1.2 ng/ml and 15 ng/ml, respectively. Such efficacy is at the forefront of all neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 under development around the world. In rodent models infected with SARS-CoV-2, DXP593 demonstrated a strong curative and preventive effect. The binding epitope of the other candidate, DXP604, is different from that of DXP593, and it has also exhibited strong neutralizing activity. The pairing of DXP593 and DXP604 are expected to be a highly competitive cocktail therapeutic option for the treatment of COVID-19 infections. It is poised to become a world-leading therapy for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 infections, especially for avoiding drug resistance caused by viral mutations.

 

On 27 August 2021, Singlomics reached an exclusive license agreement with BeiGene on the global development, production and commercial rights outside Greater China of the SARS-CoV-2-neutralizing antibodies. BeiGene is responsible for rapidly advancing the clinical development of these antibodies overseas. The Phase I clinical trial is expected to be initiated in Australia this month with up to 30 healthy subjects to be enrolled. The phase I/II clinical trial will be initiated in multiple countries by early October, enrolling patients with mild to moderate symptoms of COVID-19 infections. Information on both trials will be published on clinicaltrials.gov.

 

Nuoqing Yi, Co-Chief Investment Officer of Hillhouse Capital and Head of Biomedicals and Medical Devices of GL Ventures, said: "We continue to focus on and provide long-term support for the commercialization of research work of world’s outstanding scientists. Xiaoliang Xie's team successfully screened out neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in the blood of convalescent patients in less than three months using the advanced  single-cell sequencing technology, and preclinical animal experiments showed that the lead antibodies were highly effective in the inhibition and short-term prevention of  SARS-CoV-2 infections.  Collaboration with BeiGene will also greatly contribute to further clinical development. We believe Singlomics’ single-cell genomic technology platform will be key for the research and development of innovative drugs in the future."

 

Jingyang Zhu, Senior Investment Manager of Medical Fund of Huagai Capital, said: "In recent years, it has become clear that the pharmaceutical industry needs new technology platforms to replace existing R&D methods and accelerate innovation. Singlomics has a solid foundation based on the single-cell sequencing technology and a team of founders with excellent credentials as well as great efficiency in implementations. It is expected to bring more first-in-class drugs to the biopharmaceutical market in China and worldwide, and so generate greater industry value."

 

Ying Wang, General Manager of Changping Development, said: "We are pleased to support the rapid growth of Singlomics in Changping District, as we believe the company will bring new vitality and attract pharmaceutical talents to the biomedical ecosystem in the district. We will fully assist its development needs and jointly build a production base for biological drugs. We believe this will further expand the innovative biopharmaceutical industry in our District."

 

Yuwen Liu, Founding Partner of the BOHE Angel Fund, said: "Singlomics has outstanding technical capability and talents. We believe it has the capacity to make new technological breakthroughs in drug discovery and fulfill the unmet needs in treating difficult Human diseases. We expect Singlomics to make full use of its technological advantages and bring critical changes to the biopharmaceutical industry."

 

 

 

About GL Ventures

 

 

GL Ventures is a venture capital fund subordinate to Hilliance Capital, focusing on early-stage innovative companies in four major areas: biological medicine & medical devices, software services & related original scientific and technological innovations, consumer Internet & technology development, and emerging consumer brands & services. The area of biological medicine & medical devices has been the key investment focus of Hilliance Capital. Over the past decade, it has invested in more than 160 outstanding pharmaceutical and medical device enterprises, including BeiGene, Innovent, Junshi Biosciences, I-Mab, Frontage Laboratories, NanoMicro, Medcaptain, Pins Medical, SMO ClinPlus, Peijia Medical, MicroPort CardioFlow, Venus Medtech, Ezisurg Medical, Shenqi Medical, BrosMed Medical, Antengene, Our United Corp., Percutek Therapeutics, MicroPort™ CRM, Delta Medical and Basecare Medical, etc. It aims to provide support to the growth of enterprises over time and promote the innovation as well as expansion of companies in wider healthcare industry, which will eventually maximize the benefit to patients.

 

About Huagai Capital

 

 

With the vision of "becoming the most trusted investment partner for entrepreneurs and investors", Huagai Capital focuses on private equity investment in three areas: healthcare, TMT, and culture & education, and manages a cumulative fund of more than 15 billion RMB. Ten enterprises who received investment from Huagai have been successfully listed on the stock markets. The Medical Fund, a subsidiary of Huagai Capital, focuses on the fields of biomedicine, medical devices and healthcare services. Its investment portfolio prioritizes the mergers & acquisitions in pharmaceutical and healthcare industry as well as those opportunities devoted to high-tech enterprises growing rapidly in their early & medium stages.

 

About BCSPD

 

 

Beijing Changping Science Park Development Co., Ltd. (BCSPD), established by the Changping District Government, has constructed a one-stop investment & operation platform serving the industrial ecosystem in the district. For many years, it has been dedicated in supporting the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry by building several professional service platforms which include a sharing platform for instruments & testing services, lab-scale/pilot-scale platforms for cell & gene therapy, third-party clinical testing laboratories and CMO for medical devices. In addition, BCSPD has made full use of master funds and cooperation funds to support the medical and healthcare industry. The master fund system has invested in over 200 medical and healthcare enterprises, with a total investment of nearly RMB 7 billion. At the same time, BCSPD has also made uses of its own capital to carry out direct investment and established a direct investment fund for medical and healthcare industry. Investment from this fund has been concentrated on various frontier technological areas in the medical and healthcare field. Several companies, including Eyebright, InnoCare, and Genetron, who were benefited from the fund have been successfully listed on stock markets.

 

About BSTIG

 

 

Beijing Science and Technology Innovation Group (BSTIG) is an investment service group established under the Beijing Municipal Government. Guided by Beijing Municipal Science & Technology Commission, it is dedicated to bring scientific & technological advancement to markets and plays a key role in the development of National Science & Technology Innovation Centers. BSTIG focuses on the transition from research & development (R&D) to commercialization, and prioritize investment in key areas such as pharmaceutical & healthcare, advanced materials and artificial intelligence. Its core task is "promoting the entrepreneurship in Beijing to commercialize major scientific & technological advancement which is still in the exploration stage or under R&D but with significant market value in China and abroad". The Group has directly invested in projects including Huahui Health, Immunochina, Sylincom, BGI and ASI. In the meantime, it has successfully fostered the transformation and commercialization of innovative scientific & technological achievements through the investment from its own sub-funds, cooperation with other sub-funds and establishment of new R&D institutions.

 

About BOHE Angel Fund

 

 

BOHE Angel Fund, founded in 2015, devoted to medical & healthcare fields and focuses on global early-stage innovative R&D companies. It is dedicated to discover bio-tech start-up companies with market potentials, foster their growth and facilitate the transformation from R&D to commercialization. The senior investor team of the Fund, in conjunction with the think-tank of excellent scientists and entrepreneurs, concentrates on the cutting-edge life science & technology urgently needed in the Chinese market and the development of innovative drugs directed to new targets and acting with novel mechanisms to treat cancers, autoimmune as well as infectious diseases. Simultaneously, the fund supports innovative technical solutions to precision medicine such as early disease screening and molecular imaging. Through a profound understanding of the path and cycle of technology transformation, the fund works to accelerate the development of successful enterprises.