Deals and Financings

Shanghai’s Elpiscience Biopharma has formed a $1.7 billion collaboration with Japan’s Astellas Pharma (TSE: 4503) to develop a novel bispecific macrophage engager, ES019, along with an unspecified program (see story). Initially, Elpiscience will receive up to $37 million, including an upfront payment and license option fees. Astellas will also provide research funding to advance the programs. If Astellas exercises the option, Elpiscience is eligible to receive more than US $1.7 billion in milestones plus additional royalties. Elpiscience’s Bispecific Macrophage Engager Platform combines an anti-tumor associated antigen and an anti-signal-regulatory protein α bispecific antibody to activate Tumor Associated Macrophage phagocytosis killing of specific TAA expressing tumor cells. 

Gracell Biotech (NSDQ: GRCL), a Suzhou-San Diego cell therapy company, will be acquired by AstraZeneca in a deal worth up to $1.2 billion (see story). AstraZeneca will acquire at least one clinical stage CAR-T therapy plus Gracell’s FasTCAR next-day manufacturing technology. Gracell shareholders will receive $10.00 per ADS ($2.00 per ordinary share) in cash at closing, plus a non-tradable contingent value right for up to $1.50 per ADS ($0.30 per ordinary share) for a single regulatory milestone. The acquisition is priced at an 86% premium to Gracell’s previous closing market price. 

Jinan Qilu Pharma in-licensed greater China rights to PCSK9-targeting antisense oligonucleotide from Suzhou Ribo Life Science in a deal worth $100 million in upfront and milestone payments, plus royalties (see story). Qilu will have development, production, and commercialization rights to RED7022, a small interfering RNA drug aimed at treating hyperlipidemia. The candidate inhibits the expression of PCSK9 protein, reducing lysosomal degradation of low-density lipoprotein receptors. It is currently in a China Phase I trial. Qilu offers active pharmaceutical ingredients and finished drugs, but also develops innovative drugs. 

LianBio (Nasdaq: LIAN), a Shanghai-Princeton in-licensing biotech, has sold greater China rights for a radioenhancer to Janssen Pharma in a $30 million agreement (see story). LianBio will receive $25 million upfront and up to another $5 million in sales milestones. NBTXR3 is a novel first-in-class oncology product composed of functionalized hafnium oxide nanoparticles that is administered via one-time intratumoral injection and activated by radiotherapy. In 2022, LianBio acquired the rights from Nanobiotix, a Paris oncology company. Janssen acquired global rights (ex-China) to the radioenhancer earlier this year, paying $30 million upfront, plus other contingent payments. 

Trials and Approvals

Suzhou Innovent (HK: 01801) announced a clinical trial collaboration with Xuanzhu Biopharma that will pair Innovent’s sintilimab, an approved PD-1 inhibitor, with Xuanzhu’s novel HER-2 bispecific ADC for solid tumor cancers (see story). The Xuanzhu candidate, KM-501, is a dual-antibody ADC that targets two different domains of HER2. KM-501 is aimed at advanced/metastatic solid tumors with HER2 positive expression, amplification or mutation, including advanced tumors with low HER2 expression. Xuanzhu will conduct a China Phase Ib clinical study to evaluate the anti-tumor activity and safety of the combination therapy. 

Innovent Biologics (HK: 01801) and Sanegene Bio, a Suzhou-Boston RNA company, will collaborate to co-develop SGB-3908, a siRNA drug candidate targeting angiotensinogen to treat hypertension (see story). SGB-3908 is an IND-enabling stage candidate developed on SanegeneBio's proprietary LEAD™ (Ligand and Enhancer Assisted Delivery) platform. The two companies will be jointly responsible for developing SGB-3908 to a specific stage. At that point, Innovent can exercise its exclusive option to acquire development, manufacturing and commercialization rights to SGB-3908. If Innovent exercises the option, SanegeneBio will be eligible to receive milestone payments and tiered royalties. 

Biocytogen Pharma (Beijing) (HK: 02315) and CtM Biotech (Shanghai), a division of Lepu Biopharma, reported that their tri-specific T cell engager for an intracellular target showed preclinical anti-tumor activity for both hematological malignancies and solid tumors (see story). In just one year of collaboration, the companies have identified a WT1/HLA-A02-specific T cell engager (WT1xCD3x4-1BB tri-specific antibody) that includes a T co-stimulatory signal for a WT1-targeting T cell engager, which the companies believe will prove to be best-in-class and first-in-class. WT1 (Wilms’ tumor gene 1) is an intracellular protein highly enriched in the cells of certain cancers. 

Disclosure: none.