Flagship Pioneering announced that two of its portfolio companies, ProFound Therapeutics and Quotient Therapeutics, have entered into separate feasibility agreements with GSK to discover and validate novel targets and therapeutic approaches in respiratory and liver diseases. These agreements represent the first company-focused collaborations under the framework partnership between Flagship and GSK, combining GSK's disease area expertise with Flagship's ecosystem of bioplatform companies.
"Flagship Pioneering and GSK have a shared mission to accelerate the development of breakthrough medicines for patients with the greatest unmet needs by combining innovative new technologies with deep drug development expertise," said Paul Biondi, Managing Partner at Flagship Pioneering. "These agreements bring together two pioneering approaches to advance innovative treatments for respiratory and liver diseases, and to identify novel and differentiated targets that may alter the course of disease."
ProFound's Expanded Proteome Approach
ProFound Therapeutics will leverage its ProFoundry™ Platform to explore the expanded human proteome for novel therapeutic opportunities. The platform combines state-of-the-art protein detection technologies, targeted high-throughput functional validation methods, and advanced computational tools to identify previously unrecognized proteins encoded by the human genome.
Through two separate agreements, ProFound will advance foundational discoveries to characterize novel proteins with strong genetic associations with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). The company's approach focuses on examining the therapeutic relevance of these proteins for respiratory diseases, drawing from an ever-expanding database of tens of thousands of novel proteins, including their connectivity, functionality, and roles in health and disease.
Quotient's Somatic Genomics Platform
Quotient Therapeutics will apply its Somatic Genomics platform to unlock new therapeutic strategies by studying natural, acquired genetic diversity present in patients. The company's integrated somatic genomics and computational technologies provide unprecedented resolution into disease-causal drug targets.
Under three separate agreements, Quotient will use its technology to identify drug targets with breakthrough potential for COPD, IPF, and Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis (MASH). The platform's ability to gain unbiased insights into disease causation positions it to design and develop first-in-class therapies across multiple disease areas.
Collaboration Structure and Next Steps
Under the terms of the agreements, both ProFound and Quotient will advance their respective programs through key preclinical activities if GSK elects to progress into further collaboration. Following successful completion of these preclinical milestones, GSK will have exclusive options to advance the programs into clinical studies.
The agreements represent the operationalization of Flagship's Innovation Supply Chain partnerships, which are designed as highly co-creative strategic alliances that accelerate therapeutic innovation by bringing together partners across the full spectrum of drug discovery, development, and production.
ProFound Therapeutics, founded by Flagship Pioneering in 2020, focuses on discovering proteins hidden within the expanded human proteome to uncover novel drugs and drug targets for multiple diseases. Quotient Therapeutics, established by Flagship in 2022, develops breakthrough medicines informed by natural somatic genetic diversity, forging what the company describes as a new status quo for biopharma research and development.
