Date: 2015-10-21
Type of information: Licensing agreement
Compound: allogeneic, or "off-the-shelf", cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTLs) directed against multiple epitopes of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBVpoly) and multiple epitopes of the cytomegalovirus (CMVpoly)
Company: Atara Biotherapeutics (USA - CA) QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute (Australia)
Therapeutic area: Autoimmune diseases - Cancer - Oncology
Type agreement: R&D licensing
Action mechanism: immunotherapy product/cell therapy.
Disease: gastric cancer, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, glioblastoma multiforme, multiple sclerosis
Details: * On October 21, 2015, Atara Biotherapeutics and QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, based in Brisbane, Australia (QIMR Berghofer), announced that they have entered into exclusive license and research agreements. Under the terms of the agreements, Atara Bio obtained an exclusive, worldwide license to develop and commercialize allogeneic, or "off-the-shelf", cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTLs) directed against multiple epitopes of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBVpoly) and multiple epitopes of the cytomegalovirus (CMVpoly) utilizing technology developed by QIMR Berghofer. The QIMR Berghofer technology complements Atara Bio's ongoing CTL development efforts by selectively targeting certain epitopes and antigens. Initial applications for which the technology may be appropriate include the treatment of certain cancers such as gastric cancer, nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) and certain autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS).
Financial terms: In consideration for the exclusive license, QIMR Berghofer will receive an upfront payment and will receive additional payments based on achievement of certain development, regulatory and sales-related milestones, as well as royalty payments based on future sales, if any. Under the license agreement, Atara Bio also has the ability to exercise an option to exclusively license certain clinical stage autologous CTL therapy programs.
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