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Forlong Raises Approximately 120 Million RMB in Series Pre-B Financing to Advance its IL-15 and IL-18 Pipeline

On May 19, 2026 Forlong Biotechnology, a clinical-stage biotech company focusing on developing transformative cytokine therapies for patients with severe unmet needs, reported the successful completion of an RMB 120 million (approximately USD 17.5 million) Series Pre-B financing. This round is co-led by an undisclosed fund and Fudan Capital, along with Changshu Guofa Venture, Kunsheng Relay Fund and other investors. Proceeds from the financing will be used to advance FL115, an IL-15 superagonist, into the pivotal clinical stage, and FL116, a PD-1/IL-18 bispecific, into clinic.

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Fudan Capital Stated: "We are confident in Forlong Biotechnology’s leadership position in the cytokine therapeutics space. The company has established globally leading technology platforms including Fbody and Syntokine, validated through R&D collaborations with top-tier pharmaceutical companies such as Innovent and Henlius. Its lead asset, FL115, has demonstrated global best-in-class potential in Phase I clinical trials, with the bladder cancer indication already advancing into Phase II, underscoring a high probability of successful commercialization. We believe FL115 will emerge as a benchmark in tumor immunotherapy in the post-PD-1 era."

Forlong last raised 110 million RMB (~$16.2 million) in February 2023. Since then, it has advanced FL115 into clinics and dosed 95 patients with advanced solid tumors or NMIBC, demonstrating best-in-class potential. In addition, it has developed a robust portfolio of interleukin-18 (IL-18) variants that fully escape IL-18BP neutralization, and FL116, a PD-1/IL-18 bispecific antibody, which has demonstrated potent tumor-killing efficacy in multiple in vivo tumor models with safety profile supported by pilot toxicology study in non-human primates. Furthermore, early research efforts are ongoing to engineer other cytokines.

"We welcome the new investors and appreciate the continuing support of existing investors." Said Dong Wei, Ph.D., CEO of Forlong Biotechnology, "Exciting progress in the past 3 years have validated our cytokine-based portfolio strategy, R&D capability and efficiency. This round of financing will enable us to strengthen operational readiness and accelerate clinical development momentum to advance FL115 into Phase 3 pivotal study for BCG-unresponsive NMIBC, and FL115 as well as FL116 into Phase 2a definitive studies for solid tumors in 2027."

"We are grateful to our new and existing investors for their confidence in the Forlong team, our technology platforms, and our product pipeline." Said Mr. En Ji, Co-founder of Forlong Biotechnology, "Cytokine therapeutics have demonstrated breakthrough potential across multiple areas of significant unmet medical needs. Over the years, we are committed to synthetic immunology-driven original innovation, successfully building globally leading platforms including Fbody and Syntokine, and now advancing our lead asset FL115 into clinical validation. This financing will accelerate our core pipeline toward pivotal clinical stage. Looking ahead, we will continue to focus on unmet medical needs, advance novel products , and strive to bring safer and more effective cytokine therapies to patients."

(Press release, Forlong Biotechnology, MAY 19, 2026, View Source [SID1234665880])

Gustave Roussy and One Biosciences Partner to Bring Single Cell to Clinical Practice for Precision Oncology

On May 19, 2026 Gustave Roussy reported partnership with One Biosciences, a techbio company that harnesses single cell technology and AI to develop advanced precision diagnostics. The collaboration aims to further demonstrate the feasibility and impact of integrating single nuclei transcriptomic analysis into the patient care pathway.

Gustave Roussy, Europe’s leading cancer center, is teaming up with One Biosciences to harness the cutting-edge potential of OneMapTM, the single-cell and AI-powered solution helping to enhance precision oncology solutions. By analyzing anonymized frozen samples across four cancer indications, One Biosciences will deploy OneMapTM to generate ultra-high-resolution single-cell data, unlocking the hidden functional diversity of each tumor with unparalleled precision.

Prof. Sophie Postel-Vinay, oncologist at Gustave Roussy, team leader in Inserm unit U981 at Gustave Roussy and associate professor at University College of London comments: "I have seen firsthand how single-cell analysis can uncover mechanisms of treatment resistance in retrospective studies. I am very excited about using the OneMapTM solution in a prospective setting, fully integrated into the clinical workflow, as it could represent a major step forward in selecting the most appropriate treatment for each patient. We believe that OneMapTM’s game-changing advantage is clear: deciphering tumor heterogeneity at the single-cell level, pinpointing unique cell populations, and exposing their function will empower clinicians and allow to make more informed and smarter decisions in the treatment of patients with advanced cancer."

Leveraging advanced AI algorithms, OneMapTM will deliver individualized, actionable reports rapidly. The mission? To prove that real-time insights can seamlessly integrate into tumor molecular board reviews and ultimately patient treatment decisions

This project is the next bold step in an established partnership between One Biosciences and Gustave Roussy, leveraging single-cell analysis to predict treatment response. It follows an initial feasibility study on retrospective samples, which successfully demonstrated both effective sample processing and the delivery of individualized reports.

Dr. Céline Vallot, co-founder and CSO of One Biosciences said: "This project is a testament to the transformative power of One Biosciences’ end-to-end innovation – from pioneering laboratory workflows that unlock high-fidelity single-cell data to our AI-driven bioinformatics platform, OneMapTM, which automates analysis and delivers clinically actionable insights directly to physicians. Beyond proving feasibility, its success has the potential to revolutionize standard-of-care diagnostics, paving the way for large-scale adoption. We are excited to reveal the results and anticipate sharing this work with the oncology community."

(Press release, One Biosciences, MAY 19, 2026, View Source [SID1234665879])

Antengene Appoints Dr. Bing Hou as Chief Scientific Officer to Lead Innovation-Driven R&D Strategy and Advance Next-Generation Pipeline

On May 19, 2026 Antengene Corporation Limited ("Antengene", SEHK: 6996.HK), a leading innovative, commercial-stage global biotech company dedicated to discovering, developing and commercializing first-in-class and/or best-in-class medicines for autoimmune disease, solid tumors and hematological malignancies indications, reported that Dr. Bing Hou has been appointed Chief Scientific Officer, reporting directly to Dr. Jay Mei, Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Antengene.

Dr. Hou’s appointment underscores Antengene’s commitment to strengthening its innovation-driven R&D model as a global biotech company. In this role, Dr. Hou will lead Antengene’s efforts across Drug Discovery, Translational Medicine, and Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls (CMC), with a focus on deepening the Company’s research engine and building a pipeline of next-generation therapeutic candidates with transformational potential.

Since joining Antengene in 2019, Dr. Hou has been a key member of the Company’s scientific leadership team, and prior to this appointment, served as Vice President, Head of Discovery Science & Translational Medicine. During his tenure, he has built and led a high-caliber discovery organization, helped guide Antengene’s R&D initiatives, advanced internally discovered programs into clinical development, and played an important role in establishing newly developed proprietary platforms designed to support future innovation programs.

"We are very pleased to appoint Dr. Bing Hou as Chief Scientific Officer of Antengene," said Dr. Jay Mei, Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Antengene. "Dr. Hou has made significant contributions to shaping Antengene’s scientific strategy and strengthening our internal research capabilities. Under his leadership, Antengene has built and advanced AnTenGager, the Company’s proprietary T-cell engager (TCE) 2.0 platform with broad applicability across autoimmune diseases, solid tumors and hematological malignancies, as well as other novel programs and platform technologies that support our next-generation pipeline. The global license agreement Antengene entered into with UCB for ATG-201, a CD19 x CD3 TCE developed from the AnTenGager platform for B cell-related autoimmune diseases, further highlights the strategic value of Antengene’s proprietary discovery capabilities. As we enter our next stage of growth, we look forward to Dr. Hou’s continued leadership in expanding our innovative pipeline, and bringing forward transformative therapies for patients globally."

"I am honored and excited to step into the role of Chief Scientific Officer at Antengene," said Dr. Bing Hou, Chief Scientific Officer of Antengene. "Antengene is advancing a number of highly promising programs across oncology and autoimmune diseases, and I believe we are well positioned to build a next-generation pipeline grounded in rigorous biology, differentiated mechanisms and platform innovation. Looking ahead, we will continue to focus on programs with the potential to address significant unmet medical needs, including T cell engagers developed from our proprietary AnTenGager platform; ATG-125, a B7-H3 x PD-L1 bispecific antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) designed to combine ADC and immuno-oncology mechanisms; and ATG-207, a globally first-in-class αCD3-TGF-β bifunctional fusion protein for T cell-driven autoimmune diseases. I look forward to continuing to work closely with the Antengene team to translate our differentiated science and platform capabilities into a robust pipeline of innovative medicines."

Dr. Hou received his Ph.D. in Biomedicine from the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. He has published multiple high-impact research papers as first author or corresponding author in leading journals including Nature, Science Advances, and Cancer Research. He has filed more than 40 patent applications for novel therapeutics. As an inventor and/or principal leader, he has advanced multiple first-in-class or best-in-class drug candidates into various stages of clinical development.

(Press release, Antengene, MAY 19, 2026, View Source [SID1234665878])

Myosin Therapeutics Initiates Phase 1/2 STAR-GBM Trial of MT-125 Targeting Non-muscle Myosin II in Newly Diagnosed Glioblastoma

On May 19, 2026 Myosin Therapeutics, a clinical stage biotechnology company developing innovative therapies for oncology, reported that the first patient has been dosed in its Phase 1/2 STAR-GBM study. The trial is designed to assess safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and preliminary signals of clinical activity with longitudinal imaging in adults with newly diagnosed glioblastoma (GBM). With support from the National Cancer Institute (NCI/NIH), the trial is being conducted in collaboration with the Mayo Clinic across its Minnesota, Florida, and Arizona campuses.

MT-125 is a first-in-class inhibitor of non-muscle myosin II (NMII), designed to disrupt the physical mechanics of tumor cells to induce tumor cell collapse and death through non-redundant mechanisms distinct from any existing therapy.

"This marks the transition of MT-125 from a strong mechanistic and preclinical foundation into clinical testing in patients with one of the most aggressive cancers," said Courtney Miller, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Myosin Therapeutics. "Our research shows that targeting the mechanical dependencies of tumor cells represents a fundamentally different approach to cancer treatment, and this study is designed to test that hypothesis directly in patients with glioblastoma."

"MT-125 introduces a novel therapeutic strategy that is distinct from conventional cytotoxic and targeted approaches," said Karen Smith, MD, PhD, MBA, LLM, Chief Medical Officer of Myosin Therapeutics. "Partnering with Mayo Clinic allows us to efficiently evaluate both safety and early biological activity in a patient population with significant unmet need."

MT-125 has received Orphan Drug Designation for malignant gliomas and Fast Track Designation for glioblastoma, supporting an accelerated regulatory pathway. In addition to GBM, MT-125 is being developed for other treatment-resistant cancers, including acute myeloid leukemia and pancreatic cancer. Additional information on the STAR GBM study is available at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT07185880).

The STAR-GBM trial is supported by the National Cancer Institute and by a syndicate of life sciences investors and philanthropic organizations.

(Press release, Myosin Therapeutics, MAY 19, 2026, View Source [SID1234665877])

Matter Bio Files First IND for Lm-LLO-TT, Advancing First-in-Human Phase 1/2a Study in Pancreatic Cancer

On May 19, 2026 Matter Bio reported the submission of its first Investigational New Drug (IND) application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Lm-LLO-TT, the company’s lead therapeutic candidate, for a first-in-human Phase 1/2a clinical trial in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).

If the IND is cleared by the FDA, the Phase 1/2a study is expected to evaluate the safety, tolerability, dose optimization, and preliminary anti-tumor activity of Lm-LLO-TT in patients with PDAC, one of the deadliest and most treatment-resistant solid tumors.

"Submitting our first IND for Lm-LLO-TT is a landmark achievement for Matter Bio and the beginning of our transition into a clinical-stage company," said Chris Bradley, Chief Executive Officer of Matter Bio. "We believe this program represents a differentiated and potentially transformative approach for pancreatic cancer, a disease where patients urgently need better options. Our team has worked with urgency and discipline to bring this therapy to the clinic, and we are excited to take this next step."

Lm-LLO-TT is Matter Bio’s attenuated Listeria monocytogenes-based immunotherapy candidate, designed to stimulate tumor-directed memory immune responses in difficult-to-treat cancers. The company is advancing the program in PDAC, where current treatment options remain limited and patient outcomes remain poor.

"Lm-LLO-TT was created to mobilize the immune system in a way that could meaningfully change how we treat difficult solid tumors such as pancreatic cancer," said Claudia Gravekamp, PhD, inventor of Lm-LLO-TT. "The promise of this platform lies in its potential to both engage memory immune mechanisms and target a tumor environment that has remained resistant to many existing approaches. Seeing this program reach IND submission is deeply meaningful and brings us closer to evaluating its potential in patients."

The IND submission represents a major milestone for Matter Bio as the company moves from preclinical development toward clinical evaluation of its lead oncology program. Matter Bio expects to provide additional updates following completion of the FDA’s review of the IND.

(Press release, Matter Bio, MAY 19, 2026, View Source [SID1234665876])