On February 25, 2020 Bicycle Therapeutics plc (NASDAQ: BCYC), a biotechnology company pioneering a new and differentiated class of therapeutics based on its proprietary bicyclic peptide (Bicycle) technology, reported that it has entered into a strategic collaboration agreement with Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, to discover, develop and commercialize novel Bicycle-based immuno-oncology therapies (Press release, Bicycle Therapeutics, FEB 25, 2020, View Source [SID1234554697]).
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By entering into this early discovery collaboration with Genentech, Bicycle will be exploring its technology on a wider range of immuno-oncology targets, combining the expertise of both companies. Bicycle brings its proprietary discovery platform, which allows rapid screening of novel targets to identify Bicycles and the ability to readily conjugate these together to create novel molecules that may overcome the potential limitations of other modalities. Genentech brings to the collaboration its knowledge of immuno-oncology drug discovery and emerging target biology, as well as its development and commercialization expertise.
"Our collaboration with Genentech recognizes the potential of Bicycle’s differentiated technology, which allows us to specifically direct immune cell stimulators and other payloads to tumors in a highly targeted manner," said Kevin Lee, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Bicycle Therapeutics. "In addition, the flexibility of the Bicycle platform enables rapid exploration of structure-activity relationships to fully optimize candidate molecules. We look forward to working closely with Genentech to pioneer the discovery and development of potential new cutting-edge cancer treatments based on Bicycles."
"Bicycles represent a novel therapeutic modality and have shown promise as modulators of several types of tumor-killing immune cells," said James Sabry, M.D., Ph.D., global head of Pharma Partnering, Roche. "By leveraging Genentech’s deep understanding of cancer immunology and Bicycle’s technological expertise, we hope to create a new wave of immunotherapy options to expand the population of patients who could potentially benefit from this powerful treatment paradigm."
Under the terms of the agreement, Genentech and Bicycle will collaborate on the discovery and pre-clinical development of novel Bicycle-based immunotherapies against multiple targets. Bicycle will be responsible for discovery research and early pre-clinical development up to candidate selection, and Genentech will be responsible for further development and commercialization upon the selection of candidates. None of Bicycle’s wholly owned oncology pipeline, including its immuno-oncology candidates, are included in the collaboration.
Bicycle will receive a $30 million upfront payment. The upfront payment and potential discovery, development, regulatory and commercial-based milestone payments could total up to $1.7 billion. Bicycle will also be eligible to receive tiered royalties on Bicycle-based medicines commercialized by Genentech.