F-star, a biopharmaceutical company developing immuno-oncology bispecific antibodies, has opened its new facility in the Eddeva building on the Babraham Research Campus in Cambridge, UK. The company also appointed Michael Davies as VP Protein Sciences.
The new facility will house F-star’s expanded team, which has grown to just in excess of 60 people in the past year. The firm has also developed its capabilities to maximise the potential of its modular antibody technology for the discovery of bispecific antibody therapeutics and further progress its portfolio of novel immuno-oncology compounds into the clinic.
Davies joins F-star from CPI Biologics where he was Head of Analytical Strategy, Biologics. He has more than 15 years’ experience in the development, manufacture and commercialisation of recombinant protein therapeutics. He has also run Chemistry, Manufacturing and Control (CMC) projects to support the launch of several commercial products. Previously, he worked at Lonza, where he held leadership roles in analytical strategy and development.
In January, F-star signed a collaborative discovery & development agreement with AbbVie for the development of bispecific antibodies against two immuno-oncology targets. This follows ongoing partnerships with Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck Serono and Boehringer Ingelheim.