Arcturus Rockets on New Hep B RNA Deal With Johnson & Johnson
Shares of Arcturus Therapeutics are up nearly 15 percent in Thursday morning trading after the company inked a collaboration agreement with Janssen Pharmaceutical Inc., a Johnson & Johnson company, to develop a hepatitis B drug program.
Through an agreement with the Johnson & Johnson Innovation Center, Janssen struck the deal with Arcturus about a month after it said it was terminating its development of hepatitis C research due to an overcrowded market. This morning, four-year-old Arcturus said the two companies will collaborate on together to develop and commercialize nucleic acid-based drug products for the treatment of Hepatitis B, using Arcturus’ UNA Oligomer chemistry and LUNAR lipid-mediated delivery platform. In addition to the HBV program, Janssen also has the option to expand the program into other infectious and respiratory disease programs.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Arcturus is set for an upfront payment in cash, as well as financial support for research and development, as well as pre-clinical, development, and sales milestone payments. Janssen will assume responsibility for development costs and all commercialization costs associated with the program, according to information shares by Arcturus.
News of the deal excited Arcturus investors. Share prices climbed more than 40 percent in pre-market trading. Shares prices continued to climb after the morning bell to hit 21 cents per share.
Joseph Payne, president and chief executive officer of Arcturus, called the deal a sign of an “expanded relationship between Arcturus and Janssen.”
“Arcturus’ expertise and intellectual property in the field of RNA medicines is complemented by Janssen’s broad capabilities in clinical development, regulatory affairs, and marketing. Together we aim to bring new treatments to patients who are suffering from Hepatitis B and potentially other infectious diseases,” Payne said in a statement.
For Arcturus, the collaboration with Janssen comes on the heels of a merger with Israel-based Alcobra Ltd. The all-stock deal is expected to result in a combined company focused on developing novel RNA medicines in therapeutic areas including infectious disease, cystic fibrosis, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and rare liver diseases. At the time of the merger, Payne said the deal with Alcobra will establish Arcturus as a leading RNA medicines company.
In September, Janssen said it was scrapping development of its experimental treatment JNJ-4178, a combination of three direct acting antivirals. The drug has been in Phase II development. Janssen said the mid-stage trial would continue until it was completed, but further development would not be pursued.