Ludia Bio, a new spin-off company from the UAB to contribute to the development of biosimilars

Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), 24 November 2025 - The market for biosimilars, medicines that are essentially the same in terms of quality, efficacy and safety as the reference biological medicines, is experiencing sustained growth on a global scale. Unlike generic drugs, which are derived from simpler chemical molecules, biosimilars are derived from living organisms and require more elaborate scientific and regulatory processes. The introduction of biosimilars reduces healthcare costs and broadens citizens' access to highly complex treatments, such as those using monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of immune diseases and cancer, but there are still unexplored market niches. The launch of biosimilar medicines approved by the European Commission in emerging countries and the provision of advice to laboratories in those countries are some of the needs that have been identified.

In this context, the UAB has promoted Ludia Bio S. L., a new company specialising in responding to these opportunities by advising biopharmaceutical laboratories on the development of biosimilar medicines, as well as creating preclinical dossiers for biosimilar treatment candidates and selling to third parties.

The project is led by Professor Fernando de Mora, professor of pharmacology at the UAB and a recognised expert in the field of biosimilars. ‘Ludia Bio was created with the mission of bringing the benefits of biosimilars to new markets and thus contributing to a more accessible pharmaceutical industry,’ says Fernando de Mora. ‘The combination of scientific knowledge and regulatory insight that we have accumulated at the UAB allows us to tackle a niche market with great growth potential,’ he adds.

The company is the result of the knowledge accumulated by the UAB's Department of Pharmacology, Therapeutics and Toxicology since 2009 through comparability tests between biological compounds; the science, regulation and market dynamics of biosimilars; and agreements with laboratories that develop and market these compounds.

The project's promoter anticipates sustained growth for the company in the coming years and the consolidation of a team of experts in biotechnology and pharmaceutical regulation thanks to collaboration with various multinational laboratories.

An example of university transfer and entrepreneurship

With the creation of Ludia Bio, the UAB reinforces its commitment to knowledge transfer and the promotion of scientific entrepreneurship, contributing to the generation of economic and social value from university research.

This brings the total number of start-ups that the UAB has helped to launch since 2009 with the aim of exploiting research results to 32, adding to the 30 created before 2009, the year in which the Regulations for the creation of technology-based companies and spin-offs from the UAB were approved.