Horizon Discovery Licenses Knockout CHO Cell Line to NGM Biopharmaceuticals

Horizon Discovery Group, a United Kingdom-based provider of gene editing technologies and gene modulation for cell line engineering, announced on Jan. 21, 2020 that it will license its gene-edited glutamine synthetase (GS) knockout Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) K1 cell line to NGM Biopharmaceuticals, a South San Francisco, CA-based clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapeutics for cardio-metabolic, liver, oncologic, and ophthalmic diseases.

Horizon’s proprietary GS knockout CHO K1 cell line and protocols facilitate the development of stable cell lines for the expression of antibodies and other recombinant proteins. The complete system includes the GS knockout CHO K1 cell line, a comprehensive package of supporting documentation, and an expression vector supplied under license from DNATwoPointO. The system enables companies to move from the DNA sequence of a potential biotherapeutic to clinical manufacturing as simply and rapidly as possible, according to Horizon. The company also licenses a CHO expression system to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and biosimilar companies as well as contract manufacturing organizations.  

“We are pleased to enter into this licensing agreement with NGM for this GS knockout CHO K1 cell line to support its broad research and development efforts,” commented Dirk Gewert, Business Unit director, Horizon Discovery, in a company press release. “Horizon aims to empower organizations of all sizes, from large pharmaceutical companies to clinical-stage biotechs and early stage startups, to drive efficiencies in biotherapeutic manufacturing. To date, our complete CHO expression system has been licensed to [more than] 50 companies globally, with a number of biotherapeutics expressed in these cells having progressed to investigational new drug (IND) filings.”