Protein Science to Advance Through LenioBio and Dow AgroSciences License Agreement

INDIANAPOLIS & DUSSELDORF, Germany–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Proteins are the building blocks of science and the speed, quality and
efficiency of protein production research is being advanced through an
agreement between Dow AgroSciences LLC, and life sciences startup
LenioBio. Today the companies announce an exclusive license to enable
LenioBio to utilize Dow AgroSciences’ proprietary eukaryotic cell-free
protein expression technology. LenioBio will market the innovation to
biopharmaceutical developers under the brand name ALiCE™.

While cell-free protein expression done today enables protein chemists
to quickly produce small amounts of proteins when screening DNA
libraries, there is a need for higher protein expression yields. The
higher production efficiencies gained by ALiCE™ will make it possible
for biopharmaceutical researchers to detect a significantly higher
number of candidates from each DNA library screened, eventually leading
to a higher number of viable candidates for development. ALiCE™ also
offers the option to produce larger quantities of proteins.

This innovative cell-free protein expression system was developed by Dow
AgroSciences in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for
Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME under a long-standing
strategic alliance. This technology has been used successfully in
agricultural research.

“Today’s protein research demands speed and robust technology. Our
cell-free approach enables high-quantity protein to be produced and
validated in days instead of weeks. Dow AgroSciences, together with our
partner Fraunhofer IME, are committed to making the technology
accessible to the biopharmaceutical market, and this license to LenioBio
is key to the development and commercialization of this technology,”
said Steven Webb, Ph.D., external technology leader, Dow AgroSciences.

“ALiCE™ is superior in terms of protein yield to other cell-free
expression systems currently on the market, which makes it ideal for the
discovery of new protein drugs. We want to enable biopharmaceutical
developers and other protein chemists to take full advantage of this
system, which has established a solid record of accomplishment with Dow
AgroSciences,” said Remberto Martis, Ph.D., co-founder and chief
executive officer of LenioBio.

LenioBio will launch the ALiCE™ platform this year initially as an
expression kit that yields much higher amounts of proteins on average
than other cell-free protein expression kits. Going forward, the company
also will launch a unique protein production toolbox for
biopharmaceutical developers to fine-tune and produce their protein
candidates for pre-clinical and clinical trials in-house.

About LenioBio:

LenioBio GmbH is a life sciences start-up company committed to the
advancement of transformative technology platforms for the development
and synthesis of ‘difficult-to-produce’ proteins in biomedical,
industrial, agriculture and other relevant fields of application.
LenioBio GmbH was established as a legal entity in September 2016 with
offices in Dusseldorf and Bocholt, and R&D and production labs at the
Fraunhofer IME in Aachen. For more information about LenioBio, please
visit our website at www.leniobio.com.

About Corteva Agriscience™, Agriculture
Division of DowDuPont™

Corteva Agriscience™ is currently the agriculture division of
DowDuPont™ (NYSE: DWDP) and is intended to become an
independent, publicly traded company once the previously announced
spinoff is complete by June 2019. The division combines the strengths of
DuPont Pioneer, DuPont Crop Protection and Dow AgroSciences. Corteva
Agriscience™ provides growers around the world with the most
complete portfolio in the industry, including some of the most
recognized brands in agriculture: Pioneer®, Encirca®,
the newly launched Brevant™ Seeds, award-winning Crop
Protection products, while bringing new products to market through our
solid pipeline of action chemistry and technologies. More information
can be found at www.corteva.com.

Contacts

LenioBio
Hákon Birgisson, Ph.D.
[email protected]
or
DuPont
Gregg
Schmidt, 302-996-8368
[email protected]