Brussels, Belgium & London, UK – January 13 2014: UCB and UK’s MRC Technology have announced today that they have entered an exclusive license agreement, with UCB obtaining rights in a novel fibrosis therapy program. The program stems from a collaboration between MRC Technology’s Centre for Therapeutics Discovery and leading academics at the University of Sheffield on development of a novel antibody-based therapy which targets a key step in the progression of fibrosis.
Fibrosis is a key area of unmet medical need. It is a tissue scarring condition, a primary cause of major organ failure, and a complicating factor in chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension.
Under the terms of the agreement, MRC Technology will receive an upfront payment, clinical development milestone payments and royalties on future products. Consistent with the organization’s not-for-profit collaborative model, revenue from this deal is shared back with the University of Sheffield and will be reinvested to support other collaborative programs within its drug discovery labs.
“The program focuses on a key area of unmet medical need and we are committed to bringing fibrosis treatment to patients,” commented Mark Bodmer, UCB New Medicines Vice President and Head of Immunology. “We are excited to be working with MRC Technology and University of Sheffield scientists to build on their work to date in generating and characterizing promising therapeutic approaches with the potential for significant patient impact.”
Michael Dalrymple, Director of Business Development at MRC Technology commented: “We are delighted to be able to partner this program with UCB and we look forward to working together to ensure the project’s commercial success. This program has the potential to not only benefit fibrosis patients and help prevent organ failure, but also enables MRC Technology and its partners to help bring other new research to market.”
The target and financial terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.
For further information UCB
• Antje Witte, Investor Relations UCB
T +32.2.559.9414, antje.witte@ucb.com
• Alexandra Deschner, Investor Relations, UCB
T +32 2 559 9683, alexandra.deschner@ucb.com
• France Nivelle, Global Communications UCB
T +32.2.559.9178, france.nivelle@ucb.com
• Laurent Schots, Media Relations, UCB
T +32.2.559.9264, laurent.schots@ucb.com
For further information MRC Technology
• Sarah Jeffery, Zyme Communications
T +44 (0) 7771 730919, sarah.jeffery@zymecommunications.com
• Suzy Hargreaves, MRC Technology Marketing & Communications Officer
T +44 (0)20 7391 2798, shargreaves@tech.mrc.ac.uk
About UCB
UCB, Brussels, Belgium (www.ucb.com) is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative medicines and solutions to transform the lives of people living with severe diseases of the immune system or of the central nervous system. With 9000 people in approximately 40 countries, the company generated revenue of EUR 3.4 billion in 2012. UCB is listed on Euronext Brussels (symbol: UCB).
About MRC Technology
MRC Technology (www.mrctechnology.org) is an independent life science technology transfer charity, offering professional services to organisations within the academic, charity, biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors globally. Services include IP management and research and development for diagnostics, small molecules and therapeutic antibodies. MRC Technology bridges the gap between basic medical research and commercialisation, helping early discoveries progress to clinical application.
Forward looking statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements based on current plans, estimates and beliefs of management. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including estimates of revenues, operating margins, capital expenditures, cash, other financial information, expected legal, political, regulatory or clinical results and other such estimates and results. By their nature, such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions which could cause actual results to differ materially from those that may be implied by such forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Important factors that could result in such differences include: changes in general economic, business and competitive conditions, the inability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals or to obtain them on acceptable terms, costs associated with research and development, changes in the prospects for products in the pipeline or under development by UCB, effects of future judicial decisions or governmental investigations, product liability claims, challenges to patent protection for products or product candidates, changes in laws or regulations, exchange rate fluctuations, changes or uncertainties in tax laws or the administration of such laws and hiring and retention of its employees. UCB is providing this information as of the date of this press release and expressly disclaims any duty to update any information contained in this press release, either to confirm the actual results or to report a change in its expectations.
There is no guarantee that new product candidates in the pipeline will progress to product approval or that new indications for existing products will be developed and approved. Products or potential products which are the subject of partnerships, joint ventures or licensing collaborations may be subject to differences between the partners. Also, UCB or others could discover safety, side effects or manufacturing problems with its products after they are marketed. Moreover, sales may be impacted by international and domestic trends toward managed care and health care cost containment and the reimbursement policies imposed by third-party payers as well as legislation affecting biopharmaceutical pricing and reimbursement.
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