Founded in 2001, Glycotope started to engineer novel therapeutic antibodies and vaccines for use in oncologic therapy. Early on we recognized the need for novel technologies to control and optimize the sweet spot of antibodies and other biotherapeutics: the complex glycostructures attached to the protein, a post-translational modification called glycosylation.

Consequently, we developed the GlycoExpress™ technology, a toolbox of glycoengineered human cell lines for production of biotherapeutics with an optimized glycosylation, and applied it to increase the bioactivity of Glycotope’s proprietary NBEs and second generation biotherapeutics (biobetters).

In 2008, Glycotope acquired the biotechnological and immunological activities of Orpegen Pharma – now operated as Glycotope Biotechnology -, obtaining a CMO with more than 25 years of experience in GMP production of biotherapeutics. Through this acquisition we are able to conduct the entire process of biopharmaceutical development from the gene to the drug with a dedicated focus on protein glycosylation in-house.

After closing one of the largest financing rounds in European biotech history in 2008, the company has enjoyed tremendous growth and expanded to a company with proprietary biopharmaceutical products, platform technologies and a CMO unit, and operates with more than 120 employees at two sites in Berlin (Glycotope) and Heidelberg. (Glycotope-Biotechnology)

Our Technologies: GlycoProfiling, GlycoEngineering and the GlycoExpress™ toolbox of novel glycoengineered human cell lines were developed for improving the characteristics of biotherapeutics, resulting in products with a new patent protection and manifold higher bioactivity, prolonged half life and reduced immunogenicity due to a fully human glycosylation. With excellent biotechnological features, GlycoExpress™ is perfectly suited for high-yield production of such glycooptimized products.

Our Pipeline: Based on GlycoExpress™, Glycotope develops largely improved glycooptimized biopharmaceuticals, both proprietary and 2^nd generation antibodies and non-antibody proteins. The first product has commenced clinical trial phase I in Q4 2009 and is on track to progress to phase II in late 2010. A second antibody will start the clinic in Q2/Q3 2010. About 250 proprietary hybridomas are in the research pipeline.