OBJECTIVES

HERMES' long term goal is to develop new and innovative molecularly targeted nanocarrier systems for therapeutic and other medical applications. These technologies are developed and brought to the market by HERMES independently, as well as with commercial partners through licensing of the core technology for specific applications and/or other strategic collaborations for late stage development.

BACKGROUND

HERMES Biosciences, Inc. was founded in 1998 to develop highly innovative targeted drug delivery technologies for therapeutic and other biomedical applications. The HERMES vision builds upon previous accomplishments by HERMES scientists and others in the development of both liposomes and antibodies as targeting agents. Liposomes have become an important drug delivery system, with several first- and second-generation products approved for clinical use in oncology and infectious disease. Monoclonal antibodies have similarly become an important form of treatment, including a number of clinically useful antibodies for cancer and other diseases. Previously, HERMES founders were involved in the successful commercial development of both liposome and monoclonal antibody drugs. 

At HERMES,  scientists are focused on full integration of the complementary technologies of nanosized liposomes and cell-targeting antibody-based ligands into modularly assembled, molecularly targeted, lipid-based nanocarrier systems. These novel systems are capable of delivering an array of small molecule drugs and probes, macromolecular agents, and nucleic acid therapeutics specifically to target cells. HERMES’ integrated approach to the modular design of nanosized molecularly-targeted carriers for modern drugs and genes fits well in today’s rapidly growing arenas of nanotechnology and personalized medicine, bringing to the market new tools for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and other diseases.

HERMES was founded by Drs. Demetrios Papahadjopoulos, Keelung Hong, Dmitri B. Kirpotin, John W. Park, Christopher C. Benz, and James D. Marks. These scientists have been leaders in the areas of liposome research, membrane biophysics, antibody engineering, cancer research, and targeted therapeutics, and have collaborated closely and effectively for many years at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). This highly successful multidisciplinary collaboration is ongoing through HERMES’ close relationships with UCSF and the Buck Institute for Age Research.