Recently, the emerging enterprise in the field of virus tool and virus vector research and development, Fubio Biotechnology, completed a Pre-A round of financing worth tens of millions of yuan, jointly invested by Jiale Capital and Leading Venture Capital. The funds obtained will be used for the expansion of the company's premises and the construction of a new virus and virus like (VLP) vector research and development platform.

Viruses play an important role in the field of biomedicine

Viruses are very small microorganisms that are invisible to the naked eye and are closely related to human health. The arrival of the COVID-19 shows that with the gradual deterioration of the earth's environment and the increase of urban population density, highly pathogenic and fast mutating viruses have become a major hidden danger to human health and normal economic and social life. Therefore, the detection of viruses and the study of pathogenic mechanisms have become an important direction. With the advancement of science and technology, more and more viruses are being discovered and thoroughly studied. More than 70 years of scientific and technological accumulation have enabled humans to understand, utilize, and modify some viruses (forming recombinant viruses), making them play an indispensable and important role in the field of biomedicine.

High industry barriers: virus transformation underlying technology is the key driving force for industry development

Recombinant virus refers to a virus in which specific genes/loci (or multiple loci) in the viral genome have been modified. According to the needs of the application, genetic technology (such as modification of gene regulatory elements, gene knockout, gene addition, etc.) can be used to alter the replicability, pathogenicity, targeting and other properties of wild-type viruses, preserve or alter the natural conformation of certain capsid proteins of the virus, or enable the virus to carry specific functional genes, etc. For example, when used as a tool virus, it is necessary to consider the safety, replicability, structural similarity with wild-type viruses, tropism, transduction efficiency, and so on of recombinant viruses based on actual application scenarios; When used as a terminal product, the safety of recombinant viruses in vivo is the primary consideration. In addition, the viral vector's load, affinity, transduction efficiency, immunogenicity, and feasibility of production processes are also crucial. Therefore, understanding the structure and function of different types of virus genomes and their expressed proteins is a prerequisite for establishing virus modification technology. Establishing a deep understanding of a certain virus typically requires decades of scientific research and experimental testing.

Especially in the field of cellular gene therapy (CGT), virus modification technology is the underlying technology leading the industry's development and driving the development of new drug research and development pipelines. In the field of CAR-T, there has been a gradual shift from using retrovirus RV for CAR transduction to using the safer fourth generation lentivirus (4-plasmid transfection); In the field of gene therapy, there is a gradual transition from the earlier use of AAV1, 2, and 5 to the formation of new serotypes through capsid modification, in order to better address the issue of pre-existing immunity in the body, alter or optimize virus tropism, and so on; In the field of oncolytic viruses, virus modification techniques are used to reduce the pathogenicity and immunogenicity of wild-type viruses, or enhance their specificity to tumor cells, increase their load, and so on. In addition, virus like particle (VLP) technology derived from virus modification technology will also provide new solutions for novel vaccines and mRNA/siRNA delivery.

Fubio Biotechnology is a leading expert in virus modification technology in China. The founding team has over ten years of industry experience and strong research and development capabilities, capable of developing different virus products for different application scenarios. The enterprise has accumulated knowledge of adenovirus AAV、HPV、 The transformation and production capacity of more than 30 viral vectors, including rabies virus and Newcastle disease virus.

At present, the company is involved in two models: standard virus products and CRO services. The standard products it can provide include but are not limited to molecular detection fake virus quality control products, target protein VLP, modeling HBV virus, etc; The company is at the forefront of the oncolytic adenovirus CRO field in China, relying on a deep understanding of oncolytic adenovirus to further reduce its immunogenicity and hepatotoxicity, preserve and enhance its oncolytic efficiency, and provide innovative technology services for well-known oncolytic virus research and development enterprises and CDMO companies in China.

The company's first round of financing will be used for site expansion and the construction of a new virus and virus like (VLP) vector research and development platform. With the support of capital and the continuous improvement of the company team, Fubaiao Biotechnology will focus on the field of virus tools and virus vectors, deeply cultivate customer needs, and solve more pain points for customers in downstream application areas such as IVD, CGT, and drug screening.

Dr. Jun Liu , Chairman and General Manager of Fubio Biotechnology, stated:

With the advancement of domestic and international pipelines, adenovirus will become an important variety of oncolytic viruses. Fubio has a deep technical accumulation and a wide customer base in the field of oncolytic adenovirus CRO. At the same time, Fubaiao provides high-quality tool based products in the IVD and biopharmaceutical fields, with high customer repurchase rates and wide recognition from customers. As the first round of financing since the establishment of Fubio Biotechnology, we would like to thank Jiale Capital and Leading Venture Capital for their trust and support. With the support of capital, the company team will continue to focus on cutting-edge research on viruses, increase R&D investment, develop new carrier tools, expand production capacity, and continuously optimize the team to meet the needs of downstream customers more quickly, efficiently, and with high quality. By growing together with customers, the company will actively promote the development of domestic industries such as oncolytic viruses and recombinant virus tools, and become a leader in the field of recombinant viruses in China. ” 

Dr.  Lihua Yang, Vice President of Jiale Capital, said:

We have always recognized the dynamic and pioneering entrepreneurial team led by Dr. Liu. The company's team has been deeply involved in the field of recombinant viruses for over ten years, with a profound understanding of the structure and function of more than thirty viruses. They are able to quickly respond and develop different recombinant virus products according to different application scenarios and customer needs. In today's increasingly diversified life science application scenarios, virus products have become important tools for IVD and biopharmaceutical research and development due to their diverse types, and an indispensable carrier in the CGT field. We firmly believe in enterprises that possess the underlying technology for virus modification and can provide customized production services for viruses ranging from laboratory to preclinical level (IIT) to meet customer pain points. Fubio Biotechnology has strong research and development capabilities, stable product quality and fast delivery, and good customer reputation. We believe that the company will continue to grow in the field of life and health. Thank you to the company for choosing to cooperate with Jiale Capital among numerous investors. We believe that our cooperation can further enhance the company's core competitiveness in the field of virus tools and promote the development of China's life and health sector. ”

Shanshan Tao , the head of Leading Venture Capital Investment Department 1, said:

Biopharmaceuticals is a key industry supported and developed by Suzhou Industrial Park. Recombinant viruses, as an indispensable tool and carrier in the field of biopharmaceuticals, have broad development prospects. Dr.  Jun's Liu team at Fubio Biotechnology has been deeply involved in the field of recombinant viruses for many years and has high-quality and fast customized service capabilities. We are optimistic about the company's underlying platform technology for virus transformation and hope that the company can establish itself in the park, continuously consolidate its foundation, serve more customers, and become a leading enterprise in the field of virus tools

About Jiale Capital

As a specialized fund focused on the field of biomedicine, Jiale Capital has invested in several key upstream and downstream enterprises, including Sepp Biotech, Dongkang Biotech, and Hongren Pharmaceuticals. In the future, it will continue to focus on the core biotechnology field that is a bottleneck in the upstream of biomedicine and make more investment layouts.

About Leading Venture Capital

Established in December 2012, it is wholly controlled by the Suzhou Industrial Park Enterprise Development Service Center with a registered capital of 367.5 million yuan. The managed funds include the Park Science and Technology Innovation Fund and the Leading Yuanrui Financial Technology Fund, with a fund management scale of 2 billion yuan. It is currently the largest policy angel investment institution in Suzhou Industrial Park, playing an active role in attracting high-end talents, promoting rapid enterprise growth, and creating a scientific and technological innovation ecosystem in cooperation with the park.

Regarding the Science and Technology Innovation Fund

Jointly established by Suzhou Industrial Park Financial Review Bureau as LP and Leading Venture Capital as GP. The total scale of the first phase of the fund is 1.5 billion yuan, focusing on strategic emerging industries such as biomedicine, nanotechnology applications, and artificial intelligence. It adopts a combination of direct investment and allocation investment to support technology-based and innovative enterprises in the district to grow, improve, and strengthen.