Singapore, August 28, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — In the effort of Singapore’s government to promote the technology and innovation transfer to industrial and social applications, Singapore’s biotechnology company Lion TCR has received support from various government agencies such as Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and SPRING in technology transfer, talent training and research and development.

Lion TCR obtained the global exclusive transfer of the TCR-T cell immunotherapy technology from A*STAR ETPL. Lion TCR’s technology was developed based on the research led by Professor Antonio Bertoletti from A*STAR. The company focuses on the development of TCR-T cell immunotherapy for viral related cancers (liver cancer, nasopharyngeal cancer) and chronic hepatitis Band D. Professor Antonio Bertoletti is a world leader in this field of research. He initiated the world's first clinical trial of using TCR to redirect T cells to treat virus-related cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma.

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To hasten the product application, Lion TCR has established a Good ManufacturingPractice (GMP) facility in Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City to support product manufacturing for clinical use in Sun Yat-sen University Affiliated Hospital. On August 21, 2017, Singapore Minister of Education and SecondMinister of Defence, Ong Ye Kung, co-chaired the 8th meeting of the Singapore Guangdong Cooperation Committee with Governor, Ma Xingrui, during his visit to Guangdong. International Enterprise Singapore and Business China also visited the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City and visited Lion TCR.

The leaders of Huangpu District who accompanied the visit also affirmed LionTCR's decision to introduce the world's most advanced cancer treatment technology into Guangzhou and gave full support for the Lion TCR's development strategy. They hope that Lion TCR can continue to collaborate with medical institutions in Guangzhou to bring novel therapies to cancer patients.

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Dr. Li Lietao, the founder and CEO of Lion TCR, commented, “We are very grateful for the efforts by various departments and agencies of the Singapore government to promote the growth and development of our company. Minister Ong Ye Kung’s visit marks another high point for our company. This greatly encouraged the team to work hard to achieve our goal of commercializing deep-tech products into the international market, and to a large extent supported the deep-tech collaboration between Singapore and Guangdong."

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During this visit, Dr. Li shared with Minister Ong on the recent development of Lion TCR, including two US FDA orphan drugs designation (ODD)approval for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma T cell therapy products qualifications. This ODD approval allows Lion TCR to take the fast track when applying and be eligible for market exclusivity after the completion of Phase 2clinical trial. Lion TCR is actively developing two candidate products, including mRNA transduction (for transient expression) and DNA transduction (for stable expression) of HBV-specific TCR redirecting T cells for HCC treatment.

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According to the WHO report on cancer, one in five cancer cases in China is related to infection. HCC has the world's second-leading death toll arising from cancer, with more than half of the new liver cancer cases worldwide prevalent in China. Globally, 60% of liver cancers are caused by chronic hepatitis B infection. In China, more than 90% of liver cancers are caused by chronic hepatitis B infection. There are 780,000 new cases of liver cancer reported worldwide annually, with a poor overall prognosis and an overall survival rate of 3-5%.

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About Lion TCR

Lion TCR is a clinical-stage T-cell immunotherapy biotechnology company. The scientific technology originated from the team of Professor Antonio Bertoletti of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and the global exclusive technology transfer of the laboratory of Professor Ulrike Protzer of the Technical University of Munich, Germany. As a world leader in the use of HBV-specific TCRs to redirect T cells for the treatment of liver cancer, Lion TCR focuses on the development and commercialization of products for the treatment of virus-related cancers. To promote the clinical development and commercialization of products in China, Lion TCR has established its R&D and production base in the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City.