- 65LAB, a unique partnership of global investors ClavystBio, Leaps by Bayer, Lightstone Ventures, Polaris Partners and the Polaris Innovation Fund alongside Evotec, has funded three projects to date
- Latest award recipient Associate Professor Ruowen Ge from National University of Singapore (NUS) is leading a project that aims to deliver potential first-in-class biologic drug candidates for COPD and other lung diseases.
- The project addresses unmet medical needs for COPD patients where there is a significant lack of curative therapies
- With 65LAB support of US$1.66M the project aims to accelerate the drug development pathway and foster the creation of a new therapeutic company in Singapore.
Singapore, 18 May 2026 – 65LAB has awarded US$1.66 million (approx. S$2.1 million) to Associate Professor Ruowen Ge (Department of Biological Sciences, NUS) and co-PI, Professor Fred Wong (Department of Pharmacology, Director of the Drug Discovery and Optimization Platform, NUS) in order to advance a potential first-in-class biologic therapy for the treatment of COPD and other immune cell driven lung disease. The team at NUS have discovered an anti-inflammatory protein that, in preclinical models, plays a critical role in suppressing COPD by quenching lung inflammation and restoring lung function.
COPD is a major global health problem, affecting an estimated hundreds of millions of people worldwide and ranking among the leading causes of mortality, according to global health estimates. It is a heterogeneous disease with multiple types of immune cells playing critical roles in its pathophysiology. Airway delivered biologic therapy discovered at NUS has been shown to block the progression of induced emphysema and restore lung function in disease models.
Associate Professor Ge Ruowen, Department of Biological Sciences, NUS, said:
“Over the past few years, we have successfully demonstrated that our therapeutic target is highly effective in the selective elimination of pro-inflammatory immune cells in preclinical disease models. 65LAB’s award will enable the progression of a novel biologic candidate through pre-clinical development to a potential New Co creation focusing on COPD.”
Forging Partnerships to Drive Biotech Venture Creation
65LAB was established by global investors ClavystBio, Leaps by Bayer, Lightstone Ventures, Polaris Partners and the Polaris Innovation Fund, as well as global life science company Evotec, to drive scientific advancement and create new biotech ventures from Singapore.
The award by 65LAB underscores the importance of close partnerships between academic institutions and industry leaders in accelerating the commercialisation of promising innovations. Ge Ruowen’s project was selected through a competitive evaluation process and received unanimous support from 65LAB’s investors and partners.
Dr Ho Wen Qi, Therapeutics Lead at ClavystBio and Director of 65LAB said:
“The potential size of the COPD market is huge due to the large patient population and high healthcare cost involved in this deadly chronic disease. The project team have identified a biologic that would be applicable for both T2 and non-T2 COPD, therefore presenting an opportunity for the treatment of almost all COPD patients. With 65LAB support we are accelerating the progression of this innovative therapy to patients.”
