Collaboration
Out-licensing drugs to multinational corporations is a natural step for Chinese biotechs, but the recent rise in deals is only scratching at the surface of partnership-ready biotechs in the region.
Rumors of Biogen’s disagreements with Eisai have been greatly exaggerated, CEO Chris Viehbacher said during a second quarter earnings call. The partnered Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi saw sales climb 20% for the period.
The German giant is looking to develop new drugs for undisclosed eye diseases using Re-Vana’s extended-release injectable platform to supply drugs to the eye for months at a time.
The star of GSK’s Hengrui partnership is the COPD candidate HRS-9821, which will complement the pharma’s respiratory pipeline that’s anchored by the anti-asthma drug Nucala.
The collaboration focuses on ‘molecular gates,’ a class of molecules that the startup company Gate Bioscience says can stop pathogenic proteins from leaving the cell.
The partnership will give Chugai access to Gero’s artificial intelligence technology to discover novel targets in aging-related diseases. Chugai will then develop antibody-based drugs based on the findings.
Macrocyclic peptides are designed to engage complex targets like biologics but pass through cell membranes like small molecule drugs.
Calico will leverage 9MW3811’s anti-inflammatory mechanism to advance its mission of addressing aging-related diseases.
Flagship Pioneering’s ProFound Therapeutics will use its proprietary technology to mine the expanded proteome for novel cardiovascular therapeutics. Novartis has promised to pay up to $750 million per target, though it has not specified how many targets it will go after.
Gilead is betting up to $750 million on Kymera’s anti-CDK2 molecular glue for solid tumors, while Sanofi elected to move forward with another protein degrader from the biotech, designed to target immune-mediated diseases.
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