US-based biotechnology company Alloy Therapeutics has signed a target-specific collaboration and license agreement with France-based pharmaceutical firm France.
Under the terms of the agreement, Sanofi will use Alloy’s novel, in-house AntiClastic Antisense Platform to develop a central nervous system (CNS) target.
In exchange, Alloy will receive up to $27.5m in upfront and preclinical milestone payments.
The biotechnology company is also eligible for more than $400m in discovery, development, and commercial milestone payments, along with tiered royalties on net sales of the products.
Alloy Therapeutics genetic medicines chief scientific officer Vinod Vathipadiekal said: “At Alloy Therapeutics, we’re transforming RNA therapeutics by bridging foundational insights with modern innovation.
“Our work on the AntiClastic Antisense platform and the data generated is pushing the technology beyond current standards and driving innovation that has the potential to redefine what’s possible in RNA therapeutics.
“We look forward to continuing to deliver on Alloy’s commitment to open collaboration and accessible technologies to ensure these breakthroughs can drive the development of superior RNA-based therapies for patients.”
Under the collaboration, Sanofi will leverage its neuroscience expertise to develop a novel class of genetic medicine capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier.
It will use Alloy’s AntiClastic Antisense platform to deliver therapeutics to the brain.
The AntiClastic Antisense platform is designed to help drug developers unlock the true potential of antisense therapeutics by reaching intracellular disease targets at the RNA level.
The platform’s underlying intellectual property implements a novel spatial conformation of the oligonucleotide developed by Sudhir Agrawal of Arnay Sciences.
It addresses the limitations of current antisense chemistries related to the therapeutic index.
The collaboration complements its multi-modality approach and provides its partners with a novel platform to advance the development of therapies for patients in need, said Alloy.
Alloy Therapeutics CEO and founder Errik Anderson said: “We’re excited to partner with Sanofi, a global leader in healthcare innovation, on this landmark licensing agreement for our AntiClastic Antisense platform.
“When we began working with Dr. Agrawal, a renowned leader in antisense therapeutics, to integrate his groundbreaking work into Alloy’s genetic medicines platform, we were confident in its potential to revolutionise antisense drug development and reshape the broader drug discovery landscape.”
