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Press Clipping / May 12, 2025

Partnership advances liver cancer treatment

Scientist Live, 12 May 2025

CDMO Hovione and biotechnology company Firstgene Life Sciences (of Xlife Sciences) have collaborated to advance Hovione’s drug delivery platform for the targeted treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC).

“We are proud to advance the development of innovative oncology treatments that address a critical unmet need for precision gene expression at the tissue level,” said Hovione CEO Dr Jean-Luc Herbeaux.

The virus-like particle technology will be engineered and functionalised for the specific carcinoma cell type using therapeutically validated AAVs, including a novel primer compound.

Hovione will be responsible for molecular engineering, the supply of tailor-made virus-like particles and the execution of proof-of-concept studies.

“HCC, the most common liver cancer and a leading cause of cancer-related death, continues to represent a major unmet medical need,” said Firstgene managing director Dr Alexander Zink.

“The combination of Hovione’s expertise in complex chemistry and particle engineering and the commercialisation expertise of Xlife Sciences positions Firstgene well to offer patients potential new safe and effective therapy options.”

 

Read the full article at scientistlive.com

 

 

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Integrated approach simplifies development, reduces risk, and supports scalable manufacturing. Hovione and Industrial Design Consultancy Ltd.’s (IDC) lead single-use nasal dry powder device is now available for commercial partnerships. Hovione and IDC have completed the device design and established initial device manufacturing and supply capability, enabling pharmaceutical partners to leverage existing capsule filling infrastructure. This approach simplifies development, reduces cost and risk, and helps shorten timelines to the clinic and commercialization. “This milestone marks an important step in the evolution of our collaboration with IDC — from device innovation to a fully integrated intranasal drug delivery platform,” said Márcio Temtem, Ph.D., Vice President, Strategic Business Management, Hovione. “As the industry looks for faster, more reliable ways to bring complex therapies to patients, integration becomes critical. By bringing together nasal particle engineering science, formulation manufacturing and filling, and device technologies into a single offering, we enable a more seamless and predictable development journey, accelerating the path to market for intranasal therapies.” The nasal delivery device enables broad and targeted nasal deposition flexibility while delivering maximum usability and reliability. With a patented design and manufacturing process established, the platform is available for partnering with pharmaceutical companies on an exclusive basis as part of Hovione’s integrated offering for inhalation and nasal drug development and manufacturing. Additionally, IDC’s Managing Director, Stephen Knowles Ph.D., said the companies are now “well-advanced” with the development of a multi-use device to support an even wider range of therapies and patient needs. Read the full article at ContractPharma.com    

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