Sioux Falls-based SAB Biotherapeutics is a clinical-stage, BARDA-funded biopharmaceutical development company dedicated to developing and delivering natural, life-saving immunotherapies to address unmet needs in human health. Having developed some of the most advanced antibody science in the world, the company has created a premier immunotherapy approach–the DiversitAb™ platform–to produce human antibodies without using humans.

The proprietary platform leverages the power of polyclonal antibodies–the natural defense to disease– resulting in immunotherapies with increased safety, efficacy and tolerability. The DiversitAb platform also has the ability to rapidly produce large amounts of targeted human polyclonal antibodies (as quickly as 75 days). With its polyclonal nature, it can also address disease mutation and provides for a wide range of targets and applications.

The company is advancing a robust pipeline of products including commercial therapies for antibiotic resistance, severe hospitalized influenza, Type 1 diabetes and cancer along with emerging infectious disease targets including Ebola, MERS-CoV, Zika.

Company executives have cited the state’s strides over the last decade to develop the needed research infrastructure to support this critical industry.

One recent example: The University of South Dakota’s Discovery District, an 80-acre corporate and academic research park in Sioux Falls. SAB Biotherapeutics will serve as one of the anchor tenants of the $30.9 million project, which is scheduled to open in 2020.