Astellas Pharma Inc.’s early 2018 buyout of Universal Cells Inc. (UC) may have laid the groundwork for longer-range steps in allogeneic CAR T-cell therapy, but Xyphos Biosciences Inc. CEO James Knighton told BioWorld Asia that the buyout of his firm provides the Tokyo-based giant for now with “an incredibly elegant solution that has tremendous potential.”
BEIJING – U.S. biotech Tracon Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, has in-licensed from Chinese drugmakers 3D Medicines (Beijing) Co. Ltd. and Jiangsu Alphamab Biopharmaceuticals Co. Ltd. the rights to develop envafolimab, a subcutaneous PD-L1 antibody, to treat soft tissue sarcoma in North America.
Turnstone Biologics Inc. has found a major backer for its preclinical vaccinia-based oncolytic virus platform for cancer immunotherapy. Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. is paying $120 million in up-front, near-term milestones and equity investment and could pay $900 million more in development, regulatory and commercial milestones to enter a strategic alliance with the New-York-based firm.
HONG KONG - South Korean biopharmaceutical company Quratis Inc. and Indonesia’s state-run company, Bio Farma PT, have entered a term sheet agreement to develop and commercialize Quratis’ tuberculosis (TB) vaccine, QTP-101, for adults and adolescents.
HONG KONG – Rapt Therapeutics Inc., of San Francisco, and Seoul, South Korea-based Hanmi Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. entered a license agreement for Rapt’s FLX-475 in Asia. FLX-475 is an oral, small-molecule CCR4 antagonist for cancer treatment.
BEIJING – Luye Pharma Group Ltd., of Yantai, Shandong Province of China, has proposed to acquire Shandong Boan Biological Technology Co. Ltd. for up to $205.8 million to expand and diversify its pipeline portfolio into biologics. The payment is to be in three parts: an initial amount of $102.9 million, followed by payments linked to China marketing approval for two of Boan’s candidates of $51.45 million each.
HONG KONG – South Korean company Alteogen Inc. signed a nonexclusive global license agreement with a top 10 global pharmaceutical company for its recombinant human hyaluronidase enzyme, ALT-B4, in exchange for an up-front payment of $13 million. It is also eligible to receive additional payments of up to $1.37 billion tied to the achievement of development, regulatory approval and sales milestones. While the undisclosed big pharma will secure the global rights to develop and commercialize multiple products in combination with the Hybrozyme technology, Alteogen will be responsible for the clinical and commercial supply of ALT-B4 materials.
HONG KONG – Seoul, South Korea-based GI Innovation Inc. has licensed to Nanjing, Jiangsu-based Simcere Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. rights to its immunotherapy drug candidate, G1-101, a bispecific CD80/interleukin2 (IL-2) variant fusion protein.
HONG KONG – South Korea's Samsung Bioepis Co. Ltd. will get $100 million in up-front payments in a commercialization deal for two of its biosimilar candidates with U.S. company Biogen Inc. Under the deal, Samsung Bioepis will also be eligible for up to $270 million in milestone and option payments, as well as a share of sales revenue.
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