Monday December 01 2008 | Biotechnology feed | All feeds
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Monday December 01 2008 | Biotechnology feed | All feeds
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Innate Pharma and Novo Nordisk A/S sign licensing deal which opens new avenue in cancer immunotherapy
Marseille, December 9,
2003 -- Innate Pharma SAS announced today the closing of an important
research, development and licensing deal with Novo Nordisk A/S [NVO]
aiming at the generation of a new therapeutic class of
immuno-modulatory antibodies targeting natural killer (NK) cells. NK
cells are a subset of non-conventional lymphocytes involved in immune
regulation, and exerting direct cyto-toxicity towards a wide range of
tumor targets. Molecular understanding of this promising field emerged
in the late 90s thanks to the pioneering work of scientists associated
with Innate Pharma. This novel therapeutic strategy has been recently
validated in leukemia patients.
Under the terms of this
agreement, Innate Pharma grants Novo Nordisk A/S with exclusive rights
for one family of receptor targets expressed by NK cells. Innate
Pharma has obtained preliminary proof of concept for products acting
on this target. Novo Nordisk and Innate Pharma will now collaborate in
a research program to further develop this concept for treatment of
cancer. Major European academic institutions from Italy, France and
Sweden will contribute with valuable research and consultancy. Novo
Nordisk will be the sole party to develop and commercialize the
resulting product. Innate Pharma will retain some rights to later
develop the product in orphan indications. Innate Pharma is eligible
for license fees, milestone payments and royalties. NN has rights for
all indications, the primary target indications being in oncology.
Financial terms will not be disclosed.
Hervé Brailly, CEO of
Innate Pharma, says: "This is a very important agreement for
Innate Pharma from a scientific, strategic and financial standpoint,
and a major step-up for a product-oriented company such as Innate.
This agreement provides the company with a third party validation for
its innovative approach targeting non-conventional lymphocytes. Novo
Nordisk is a reference partner in the field of therapeutic proteins,
bringing to the project a comprehensive panel of technologies in
protein engineering, and first class development and marketing
capacities, thus maximizing chances of technical and commercial
success. Through this deal, Innate Pharma secures significant short
term cash in, providing unique comfort to the company to implement its
clinical development program in the next years. In case of success,
the Novo Nordisk alliance may also bring key revenues to Innate in the
long run. We feel that the product has a great potential not only in
cancer, but also to address effectively and safely other
life-threatening conditions affecting the immune system."
About Novo Nordisk:
Novo Nordisk is a focused
healthcare company. With the broadest diabetes product portfolio in
the industry, including the most advanced products within the area of
insulin delivery systems, Novo Nordisk is a world leader in diabetes
care. In addition, Novo Nordisk has a leading position within areas
such as hemostasis management, growth hormone therapy and hormone
replacement therapy. Novo Nordisk manufactures and markets
pharmaceutical products and services that make a significant
difference to patients, the medical profession and society. With
headquarters in Denmark, Novo Nordisk employs approximately 18,700
people in 68 countries and markets its products in 179 countries. Novo
Nordisk's B shares are listed on the stock exchanges in Copenhagen and
London. Its ADRs are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the
symbol 'NVO'. For further company information visit www.novonordisk.com.
About Innate Pharma:
Innate Pharma S.A.S., is a
French biopharmaceutical company in clinical development stage
specialized in cancer immuno-therapeutics. It is the first company to
develop immuno-modulating medications and cellular therapies targeting
non-conventional lymphocytes. The company has currently two products
in Phase I of clinical development in cancer. The company was founded
in 1999, and raised Euro 25m in private funding since inception in two
rounds of financing. Companies investing in Innate are Sofinnova
Partners, Auriga, GIMV, INSERM Transfert, Alta Partners, Axa Private
Equity, Gilde Biotech and Nutrition, Pechel Industries and Innoveris.
For further company information, visit www.innate-pharma.com.
For further information
please contact:
Andrew Lloyd/Keren
Perrott
Andrew Lloyd &
Associates
Phone: +44-1273 675100
Fax: +44-1273 675400
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