Merck (NYSE: MRK) has signed two clinical collaboration agreements and two memorandums of understanding with Chinese biotech companies through its MSD R&D China Innovation Collaboration Center, targeting oncology and autoimmune disease programs for potential global development. The formal agreements cover antibody drug development in autoimmune diseases with Hangzhou Medimscience Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd, and molecular glue degrader programs in oncology with Degron Therapeutics, while MOUs with Zelgen Pharmaceutical and InventisBio (SSE STAR: 688382) establish exploratory frameworks for future collaboration.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
Deal context
The collaboration with Degron centers on the company's molecular glue degrader platform, described by Degron as GlueXplorer. Molecular glues are small molecules that induce or stabilize interactions between an E3 ubiquitin ligase and a target protein, directing the target for destruction by the cell's proteasome. The mechanism operates catalytically — the drug is released after each degradation event — and can silence proteins that lack conventional binding pockets, a category that has historically resisted small-molecule drug development. Degron's platform is built around more than 10,000 compounds spanning over 150 non-IMiD scaffolds.
The collaboration with Medimscience covers antibody drugs in autoimmune disease. Neither the molecule identity nor the biological target has been disclosed. The two MOU partners, Zelgen and InventisBio, are at an earlier exploratory stage. InventisBio's known pipeline includes small molecules directed at genomic instability mechanisms in cancer.
The MCICC was established in 2024 as a dedicated unit within Merck's global R&D organization to source and advance early-stage programs from China's biotech ecosystem. The center has engaged with more than 530 local companies and conducted detailed exchanges with over 100 of them. The two formal collaboration agreements signed in May represent the third and fourth such agreements since the center's founding.