Print“Though much of Allergan’s growth has been centered on the success of its top drug Botox it has been trying to expand its eye-drug franchise, which experienced slowing sales last quarter.”
Allergan and Swiss biotech Molecular Partners have announced the expansion of their existing partnership with two new agreements for the development and commercialization of a class of biologics aimed at treating serious diseases of the eye. As part of the separate agreements, Molecular will receive a combined upfront payment of $62.5 million and is eligible to receive up to $1.4 billion based on successful development, regulatory, and sales milestones, plus royalties on sales of future products.
Both agreements center on DARPins, therapeutics combining the specificity and selectivity of monoclonal antibodies with small-molecules to deliver high stability and low-cost production.
The first of the two agreements is an exclusive license for the design, development, and commercialization of Molecular’s MP0260 protein to treat wet age-related macular degeneration. The companies will work together to develop MP020 through human proof of concept, at which point Molecular can choose to co-fund Allergan’s development costs and in return receive a significant royalty “step-up.”
The second agreement is an exclusive discovery alliance agreement built on the design and development of DARPins against selected targets that cause serious eye diseases. Allergan has the right to exercise options under the agreement that would allow it to exclusively license the compounds for ophthalmology.
Allergan first expressed interest in Molecular’s DARPins technology when it struck a $420 million license agreement with the company in May 2011. That deal was struck for MP0112, a mid-stage DARPins protein, and provided Molecular with an upfront payment of $45 million and up to $375 million in milestone payments.
Though much of Allergan’s growth has been centered on the success of its top drug Botox – the company reported double digit sales growth for the drug in its second-quarter earnings report – it has been trying to expand its eye-drug franchise, which experienced slowing sales last quarter.
August 24, 2012
http://www.burrillreport.com/article-allergan_and_molecular_partners_enter_1_4_billion_alliance_.html
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