AstraZeneca enters development agreement with Ionis Pharmaceuticals

(Alliance News) - AstraZeneca PLC on Tuesday said it has entered a global development and ...

Alliance News 7 December, 2021 | 10:03AM
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(Alliance News) - AstraZeneca PLC on Tuesday said it has entered a global development and commercialisation agreement with Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Cambridge-based Astra and Carlsbad, California-based biotechnology firm Ionis said they will jointly develop and commercialise eplontersen in the US.

Eplontersen is a ligand-conjugated antisense investigational medicine currently in phase three clinical trials for amyloid transthyretin cardiomyopathy and amyloid transthyretin polyneuropathy.

Nonetheless, it is intended for the treatment of all kinds of transthyretin amyloidosis.

As part of the agreement, Ionis will continue to lead the conduct of phase three trials and manufacture and supply eplontersen for the ongoing clinical trials and process qualifications.

AstraZeneca, for its part, will develop and commercialise the drug in the rest of the world, with the expectation of Latin America.

AstraZeneca will pay Ionis USD200 million upfront with additional payments of up to USD485 million following regulatory approvals.

Furthermore, Astra will pay up to USD2.9 billion of sales-related milestones based on a sales threshold between USD500 million and USD6 billion.

Royalties will be paid in addition in the range of low double-digit to mid-twenties percentage depending on the region, Astra said.

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2021 and will be funded with cash.

Moreover, it is expected to be neutral to Astra's core earnings, it said.

Amyloid transthyretin cardiomyopathy is a life-threatening condition that leads to progressive heart failure and death within four years from diagnosis.

Hereditary amyloid transthyretin polyneuropathy is a debilitating disease that leads to peripheral nerve damage with motor disability within five years of being diagnosed. Without treatment, this condition can generally be fatal within a decade.

Eplontersen is designed to reduce the production of transthyretin to treat both hereditary and non-hereditary forms of transthyretin amyloidosis.

"Eplontersen has the potential to halt the progression of TTR-mediated amyloidosis, irrespective of whether it's caused by genetic mutations or aging. Thanks to its precise liver-targeting properties, it also has the potential to be a best-in-class treatment for patients suffering from this devastating disease and who currently have limited options," Mene Pangalos, executive vice president of BioPharmaceuticals Research & Development at AstraZeneca said.

Shares in AstraZeneca were down 2.0% at 8,199.53 pence each on Tuesday morning in London

By Abby Amoakuh; abbyamoakuh@alliancenews.com

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