RE: Lupuzor28 Nov 2019 23:55
ImmuPharma skyrockets on news of Lupuzor licensing deal
The Pharma Letter - 28-11-2019
UK-based drug developer ImmuPharma (LSE: IMM) saw its shares stratospheric this morning, trebling after it revealed a licence and development agreement with Avion Pharmaceuticals, for the exclusive rights to Lupuzor (forigerimod) in North America. The stock was still up 252% at 24,80 pence by early afternoon.
Lupuzor is ImmuPharma’s lead compound, a peptide therapeutic and a first-in class autophagy immunomodulator for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE or lupus) a potentially life-threatening auto-immune disease. In addition, Lupuzor has the potential for treating auto-immune diseases other than lupus. A trademark licence agreement also has been signed to allow Avion the use of various trademarks in connection with development, manufacture and commercialization of products under the licence and development agreement.
Deals valued at up to $70 million
ImmuPharma will receive up to $70 million in milestone payments from Avion, which will commercialize Lupuzor exclusively for the USA, with $5 million due on regulatory approval of the product and a further $65 million depending on sales targets. ImmuPharma will also get royalties of up to 17% on sales, while there are financial incentives to expand Lupuzor’s use into other autoimmune diseases.
The deal vindicates ImmuPharma’s faith in its lupus candidate, which in April last year suffered a setback on the back of the publication of trial results for Lupuzor. The Phase III trial did not meet its primary endpoint but the company blamed this on the placebo-effect and stressed that Lupuzor warrants continued investigation.
The market value for the treatment of Lupus is estimated to be worth over $3 billion by 2024 according to market data firm Goldstein Research.
Further terms of the deal
ImmuPharma retains all the rights to commercialize Lupuzor outside of the USA, either through distribution partnerships or directly by ImmuPharma.
A new optimized international Phase III trial in lupus patients (which is expected to include patients in the USA, Europe and elsewhere), is targeted to commence in 2020, following agreement of the trial design between Avion, ImmuPharma and the US Food and Drug Administration. Avion will fund the full expected costs of the new Phase III trial up to $25 million.
“We are delighted to be entering into this partnership with Avion, a company which has a strong track record within late stage clinical development and commercialisation of products within the US, the largest market for lupus patients. Importantly, Avion’s specialist sales team is well respected within the rheumatologist community, whose focus is on prescribing safe and efficacious treatments for auto-immune diseases such as lupus. This makes it a perfect fit for Lupuzor,” commented ImmuPharma’s chief executive Dimitri Dimitriou and president Robert Zimmer ............
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