Agios, Celgene Reach Deal to Develop Cancer Immunotherapies
May 17 2016 - 5:54PM
Dow Jones News
By Tess Stynes
Agios Pharmaceuticals Inc. (AGIO) will receive an initial
payment of $200 million as part of a collaboration deal with
Celgene Corp. (CELG) to develop metabolic immunotherapies to treat
cancer.
Shares of the Cambridge, Mass.-based Agios rose 2.4% to $52.50
in recent after-hours trading.
Metabolic immunotherapy research focuses on altering the
metabolic state of immune cells to enhance the ability of the
body's immune system to fight cancer.
"The immune system's ability to attack tumors is highly
regulated by cellular metabolism," Celgene Chief Scientific Officer
Rob Hershberg said. "This emerging discipline of metabolic
immuno-oncology has great potential to provide novel insights and
targets for cancer immunotherapy in solid and hematologic
malignancies."
Under the collaboration deal, Agios will be eligible to receive
as much as $169 million in milestone payments for each metabolic
immunotherapy program.
Celgene, based in Summit, N.J., also will have a one-time
opportunity to select a metabolic immunotherapy program in which
Celgene will have a 65% share of costs and profit, compared with
the rest of the programs where expenses and earnings would be split
evenly. For the program Celgene chooses, Agios is eligible for as
much as $209 million in milestone payments.
For any inflation or autoimmune therapy programs that may result
from the collaboration, Agios has an option to enter a licensing
agreement. For any such licensed treatments, Agios could
potentially receive up to $386 million in milestone payments.
The two biopharmaceutical companies also modified certain rights
under a 2010 collaboration deal. Under the modified terms, Agios
gains global development and commercial rights to an experimental
treatment, known as AG-120, which is being studied as a potential
therapy for acute myeloid leukemia.
In addition, two cancer metabolism programs from the 2010
alliance will move ahead under a new research collaboration
structure. Agios also will be eligible for any milestone payments
for these two programs.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 17, 2016 17:39 ET (21:39 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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