Disabling Antibodies that Drive Rare, Immunological Conditions

Antibodies play an important role in the protective immune response. In some situations, though, such as autoimmune diseases, antibodies can cause harm by attacking healthy tissue. Hansa Biopharma has developed an antibody-cleaving enzyme technology platform to target pathogenic antibodies involved in autoimmune disease, organ transplantation, and gene therapies. Its lead experimental therapy, imlifidase, is designed to inactivate immunoglobulin G antibodies through a single intravenous treatment. It is in development for a range of rare, immunological conditions including Guillain-Barre syndrome or anti-GBM disease and as a pre-treatment for various gene therapies. We spoke to Matthew Shaulis, chief commercial officer and U.S. president for Hansa Biopharma, about the company’s antibody-cleaving platform technology, how it works, and its range of potential uses.