Date: 2013-11-21
Type of information: R&D agreement
Compound: Fynomer-antibody platform
Company: Covagen (Switzerland) Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma (Japan)
Therapeutic area: Technology - Services
Type agreement: R&D
licensing
Action mechanism: Fynomers are small binding proteins that can be engineered to bind to any antigen of interest. Because of their excellent biophysical properties, Fynomers can be readily fused to therapeutic proteins such as antibodies to create bispecific FynomAbs.
Disease:
Details: * On October 17, 2012, Covagen has entered into a strategic research collaboration and license agreement with Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation and its fully owned subsidiary Tanabe Research Laboratories U.S.A., Inc. of San Diego Calif. (TRL). Under the agreement, Covagen will use its proprietary Fynomer-antibody platform to generate bispecific proteins (FynomAbs) against two target pairs selected by TRL and Mitsubishi Tanabe. Fynomers are small binding proteins that can be engineered to bind to any antigen of interest. Because of their excellent biophysical properties, Fynomers can be readily fused to therapeutic proteins such as antibodies to create bispecific FynomAbs.
Financial terms: For the global, exclusive rights to bispecific FynomAbs against on target pair, Mitsubishi Tanabe will pay to Covagen € 4.0 million upfront. Under the agreement, Mitsubishi Tanabe will fund all research activities and be solely responsible for the development, manufacturing and global commercialization activities. Upon achievement of certain research, development and regulatory milestones, Covagen will be entitled to receive payments of up to € 108.25 million for FynomAbs against the first target pair as well as tiered royalties on worldwide net sales of products resulting from the collaboration. Financial terms are substantially similar for FynomAbs addressing the second target pair which TRL and Mitsubishi Tanabe have the option to select.
Latest news: * On November 21, 2013, Covagen and Tanabe Research Laboratories U.S.A have announced that they expanded their strategic research collaboration. TRL and Mitsubishi Tanabe have nominated a first bispecific FynomAb for formal preclinical development which triggered an undisclosed milestone payment. They also exercised an option for a second bispecific FynomAb program based on the parties’ research and licensing agreement signed in October 2012. Through payment of an undisclosed option fee, MTPC secured global, exclusive rights to bispecific FynomAbs against a second target pair in oncology.
