Hasselt University lures in another foreign biotech as Mabcure moves to Belgium

18 Nov 2008 | News

Relocation

MabCure Inc. of Reno, Nevada is moving its headquarters to Belgium and setting up a wholly-owned subsidiary on the Biomed Campus at Hasselt University. The antibody specialist is the second overseas biotech in a month to make such a move, with the UK immunology company Apitope Ltd also setting up a Belgian subsidiary and moving its headquarters to enable it to collaborate with the university

Like Apitope, MabCure’s Belgian subsidiary will collaborate with Hasselt in the development of diagnostics. The aim is to accelerate the development and commercialisation of the company’s antibody-based cancer diagnostics. MabCure NV will be eligible to apply for research grants from the Flemish Government.

In addition to its own R&D programme, MabCure NV plans to develop joint projects with Hasselt.

The company’s President and CEO, Amnon Gonenne, has been appointed CEO of the Belgian subsidiary, while Elisha Orr, a cancer researcher and the developer of the company’s antibody technology, has been appointed Chief Scientific Officer.

MabCure’s initial goal is to develop its novel antibodies as diagnostic tools for the detection of ovarian and prostate cancers at an early stage, when these diseases are still localised and often highly curable.


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