Privately-held Swiss firm Polyphor has signed a collaboration and license agreement with US biotech major Gilead Sciences (Nasdaq: GILD). The collaboration aims to identify and optimize macrocycle molecules addressing challenging biological targets selected by Gilead.
Under the terms of the deal, Polyphor will receive an upfront payment and research funding, and will be eligible for further milestone payments. Further financial terms were not revealed. In the initial phase of the collaboration Polyphor will apply its entire macrocycle platform consisting of non-peptidic macrocyles (MacroFinder), peptidic macrocycles (PEMfinder, protein-epitope mimetics) and phage display of PEM-like molecules (PEMphage) to generate tractable macrocycle hit families for further optimization.
Dr Daniel Obrecht, chief scientific officer of Polyphor, said: "The collaboration with Gilead is another important milestone for Polyphor. Applying Polyphor's proprietary macrocycle platform in joint drug discovery projects maximizes the value of the technology for our partners and us. Partnerships with biopharmaceutical companies are a key element of our strategy to realize the full potential of this novel drug class, while focusing our own R&D activities on novel antibiotics and rare respiratory diseases."
Polyphor pipeline
Macrocycles represent a new drug class, complementary to both traditional small molecules and large biopharmaceuticals. Polyphor leverages its unique and proprietary technology platform to develop its own product portfolio and to pursue licensing and collaboration opportunities with industry partners. The company's lead drug candidates include:
- POL7080, (murepavadin, Phase II), a highly specific antibiotic with a novel mode of action to treat Pseudomonas infections;
- POL6326, (balixafortide, Phase Ib), a CXCR4 antagonist, for combination treatments in oncology and other indications; and
- POL6014 (Phase Ib), an inhaled inhibitor of neutrophil elastase for the treatment of cystic fibrosis, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, and other lung diseases
Under the terms of the deal, Polyphor will receive an upfront payment and research funding, and will be eligible for further milestone payments. Further financial terms were not revealed. In the initial phase of the collaboration Polyphor will apply its entire macrocycle platform consisting of non-peptidic macrocyles (MacroFinder), peptidic macrocycles (PEMfinder, protein-epitope mimetics) and phage display of PEM-like molecules (PEMphage) to generate tractable macrocycle hit families for further optimization.
Dr Daniel Obrecht, chief scientific officer of Polyphor, said: "The collaboration with Gilead is another important milestone for Polyphor. Applying Polyphor's proprietary macrocycle platform in joint drug discovery projects maximizes the value of the technology for our partners and us. Partnerships with biopharmaceutical companies are a key element of our strategy to realize the full potential of this novel drug class, while focusing our own R&D activities on novel antibiotics and rare respiratory diseases."
Polyphor pipeline
Macrocycles represent a new drug class, complementary to both traditional small molecules and large biopharmaceuticals. Polyphor leverages its unique and proprietary technology platform to develop its own product portfolio and to pursue licensing and collaboration opportunities with industry partners. The company's lead drug candidates include:
- POL7080, (murepavadin, Phase II), a highly specific antibiotic with a novel mode of action to treat Pseudomonas infections;
- POL6326, (balixafortide, Phase Ib), a CXCR4 antagonist, for combination treatments in oncology and other indications; and
- POL6014 (Phase Ib), an inhaled inhibitor of neutrophil elastase for the treatment of cystic fibrosis, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, and other lung diseases
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