Date: 2016-09-28
Type of information: Pipeline acquisition
Acquired company: 4SC's immunology portfolio
Acquiring company: Immunic (Germany)
Amount: undisclosed
Terms: * On September 28, 2016, 4SC announced that it has executed an agreement with Immunic to sell 4SC's immunology portfolio, which includes two drug development programs and associated intellectual property and know-how. Immunic will continue all research and development activities for these drug development programs and 4SC will receive a one-time upfront payment as well as milestone payments and royalties. 4SC will now continue to focus its epigenetics strategy on key oncology assets (resminostat and 4SC-202).
Details: This immunology portfolio includes two drug development programs and associated intellectual property and know-how, IMU-838, a potential treatment option for Crohn’s disease and IMU-366, selective cytokine inhibitors for development in immune and autoimmune diseases. IMU-838 is an orally available, next-generation immune modulator. IMU-838 inhibits an enzyme called “dihydroorotate dehydrogenase” (DHODH) which plays a key role in the metabolism of activated T and B cells while leaving other immune cells largely unaffected and allows the immune system to stay functioning, e.g. in fighting infections. Immunic currently plans to soon initiate phase I studies for IMU-838 in healthy volunteers followed by a phase II clinical trial program in patients suffering from Crohn’s disease. The IMU-366 program comprises one lead compound and a family of orally available small molecule inhibitors of ROR?t, a nuclear receptor known to influence the production of a wide range of cytokines involved in various immune or autoimmune diseases. “ROR?t is crucial for the development of the TH17 T cell subset (specialized immune cells) and for these cells to release their specific cytokines after activation”, explains Dr. Andreas Mühler, Immunic’s co-founder and Chief Medical Officer. “Unfortunately, an overreaction of TH17 immune cells often is an underlying mechanism of various diseases. In pre-clinical experiments the lead compound of the IMU-366 program demonstrated efficacy in various models of immune and autoimmune diseases. These data will allow Immunic to develop drug candidates with activity in a variety of diseases such as psoriasis.”
Related: Autoimmune diseases Immunological diseases
