Print
As more than 15,600 people attending the 2014 BIO International Convention in San Diego hustled between sessions, partnering meetings, and the exhibition floor, Mersana Therapeutics said that it had partnered with Merck Serono, biopharmaceutical division of Merck KGaA, to develop next-generation antibody-drug conjugates, or ADCs. ADCs are targeted antibodies linked to cytotoxic drugs, allowing for higher drug levels at the tumor site. Mersana and Merck Serono will leverage Mersana’s Fleximer technology to generate ADCs for multiple undisclosed targets in oncology. They plan to test a variety of ADCs by using Mersana’s platform technologies and several cytotoxic agents as conjugates.
Under their exclusive licensing agreement, Mersana will use its Fleximer technology to generate ADCs using Merck’s monoclonal antibodies and conduct drug discovery and preclinical development activities. Merck will be responsible for clinical development and commercialization of any products arising from the collaboration. Mersana stands to earn up to $792 million in an upfront payment and development milestones, plus royalties on global sales.
The deal gives Merck KGaA an opportunity to expand its oncology portfolio and jump into a field that has been successful for Seattle Genetics and the Genentech division of Roche.
“This new collaboration provides an exciting opportunity to expand our oncology drug discovery and development portfolio into the evolving ADC space,” says Andree Blaukat, head of the Translational Innovation Platform Oncology at Merck Serono. “We have a long-standing commitment to improving oncology care, and we aim to deliver the best benefit possible to patients. Partnering with Mersana allows us to incorporate cutting-edge research and technical excellence to enrich our pipeline.”
Mersana’s next-generation ADC technology is based on its proprietary biodegradable polymer system, known as Fleximer, and a wide variety of linkers that allow for the attachment of an extensive range of anti-tumor payloads to Fleximer. The linker systems are designed to be stable in the bloodstream and to release the potent payloads once inside the targeted cancer cell.
Mersana’s collaboration with Merck Serono comes less than three months after it entered into a similar arrangement with Takeda’s Millennium Pharmaceuticals to develop Fleximer ADCs using antibodies supplied by Takeda. While dollar amounts of that deal were not disclosed, the terms were similar.
June 27, 2014
http://www.burrillreport.com/article-mersana_and_merck_kgaa_in_licensing_deal_worth_up_to_792m_.html
