- The combination represents a success story that evidences the increasing maturity of the Galician biotech sector, strengthening the whole entrepreneurial ecosystem as well as the public support policies developed by the Xunta de Galicia.
- The Galician company Origo Biopharma, which has already developed a drug candidate for the treatment of Crohn's disease currently in a phase 1 clinical study and a preclinical candidate for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, will accelerate its research and development projects from its current facilities in Galicia.
Origo Biopharma, based in the Business Park in Touro (Galicia), is a biotech founded in 2017 by Julio Castro and GalChimia, and led by Ramon Bosser, CEO and shareholder. The company has financial support from the Xunta de Galicia (through XesGalicia) and Asabys Partners, who led a seed round in June 2020 that allowed the company to incorporate talent, increase its product portfolio, and advance their development toward clinical stages. Specifically, Origo Biopharma develops organ-restricted small molecules that inhibit the signaling pathway of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) for the treatment of fibrotic diseases.
Agomab Therapeutics NV (‘Agomab’) has acquired Origo Biopharma. The combined entity will translate its deep expertise in growth factor biology to pioneer and develop novel treatments that aim to resolve fibrosis, repair tissue structure and restore organ function. Agomab's hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) agonistic monoclonal antibodies, together with Origo Biopharma's small molecule programs, create a clinical-stage pipeline with a wide range of candidates to address fibrosis and organ failure in multiple therapeutic areas.
This operation is a success story for the Galician biotech ecosystem, which has already positioned Galicia as the second most bio-entrepreneurial region in the country thanks to the knowledge and entrepreneurship provided by Galician universities and technology centers, as well as the significant impulse achieved through the collaboration between the Xunta de Galicia and the private sector.
In this sense, the transaction is a milestone that strengthens the Consolidation Strategy for the Galician Biotechnology sector for the period 2021-2025, a roadmap through which Galicia aims to be strategically placed in leadership positions as one of the regions with the greatest economic, scientific-technological and social projection during the next decade. In addition to the benefits derived from the attraction of international capital and talent to the project, the synergies between Agomab and Origo Biopharma in the treatment of fibrosis-related diseases will accelerate their current research and development projects at the facilities of Origo Biopharma in Touro, thus promoting the competitiveness of the sector both nationally and internationally.
