On August, 19, 2014 Emergent BioSolutions and MorphoSys reported an agreement for the joint development and commercialization of Emergent’s preclinical bi-specific antibody, ES414, targeting prostate cancer (Press release Emergent BioSolutions, AUG 19, 2014, View Source [SID:1234500703]). Under the terms of the agreement, Emergent will receive an upfront payment of US$20 million and milestone payments of up to US$163 million. These milestone payments are linked to specific events, including successful development of ES414 in several indications and securing approval in certain territories. Emergent and MorphoSys will jointly develop ES414, with MorphoSys bearing 64% and Emergent 36% of the total costs. Emergent will retain commercialization rights in the U.S. and Canada, with a tiered royalty obligation to MorphoSys, from mid-single digit up to 20%. MorphoSys will gain worldwide commercialization rights excluding the U.S. and Canada, with a low single digit royalty obligation to Emergent. Emergent will manufacture and supply clinical material from its manufacturing facilities in Baltimore, Maryland. Additional financial details were not disclosed.

ES414, which will be renamed MOR209/ES414, was developed by Emergent using its proprietary ADAPTIRTM (modular protein technology) platform. Preclinical in vitro and in vivo studies have shown that ES414 redirects T-cell cytotoxicity towards prostate cancer cells expressing Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA), an antigen commonly found on such cells.

Barry Labinger, Executive Vice President and President Biosciences Division at Emergent BioSolutions, stated: “Emergent looks forward to collaborating with MorphoSys to potentially address important unmet needs amongst patients suffering from prostate cancer. Our companies bring complementary capabilities, compatible cultures and values, and a shared commitment to the highest quality development and commercialization of ES414. We expect to begin clinical development within the next six months. Progress with ES414 will help validate our ADAPTIR platform, which we believe has broad potential to generate additional novel treatments for cancer and other important diseases. We are encouraged by our partnership with MorphoSys and the continued interest of multiple parties in our ADAPTIR platform.”

Arndt Schottelius, Chief Development Officer of MorphoSys, added: “We are pleased to be working with Emergent BioSolutions. We believe ES414 has the potential to be an important therapy for prostate cancer, where there is a pressing need for better treatments. The preclinical data suggest that the molecule has a number of potential advantages over other drug candidates in this indication. Our goal is to combine our capabilities with those of Emergent to enable the fastest possible development and commercialization of ES414.”

Emergent and MorphoSys plan to initiate a Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating ES414 in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) within the next six months. The initial phase of the trial will be conducted in the U.S. and Australia, with Emergent as the sponsor.

On August 18, 2014 Eisai reported that it has submitted applications to regulatory authorities in the U.S. and Europe (the FDA and EMA respectively) for marketing approval of its novel in-house developed anticancer agent lenvatinib mesylate (lenvatinib) as a treatment for progressive radioiodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer (RR-DTC) (Press release Eisai, AUG 17, 2014, View Source [SID:1234500705]).

An application seeking marketing approval of lenvatinib for the indication of thyroid cancer was submitted in Japan on June 26, 2014. Lenvatinib was granted Orphan Drug Designation for thyroid cancer in Japan, Europe and the U.S. Lenvatinib was also granted an accelerated assessment in Europe by the EMA, as it is a new medicine expected to be of major public health interest, particularly from the viewpoint of therapeutic innovation.

Lenvatinib is an oral multiple receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) inhibitor with a novel binding mode that selectively inhibits the kinase activities of several different RTKs including VEGFR, FGFR, PDGFRα, KIT and RET, involved in angiogenesis and tumor proliferation. This potentially makes lenvatinib a first-in-class treatment in thyroid cancer, especially given that it simultaneously inhibits the kinase activities of FGFR as well as VEGFR.

The applications submitted were based on a Phase III clinical study, known as the SELECT (Study of (E7080) LEnvatinib in Differentiated Cancer of the Thyroid) trial, which was a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of lenvatinib in 392 patients with RR-DTC and radiographic evidence of disease progression within the prior 13 months (patients may have received ≤1 prior VEGFR-targeted therapies). The study was conducted by Eisai in cooperation with SFJ Pharma Ltd.

Compared to placebo, lenvatinib achieved a statistically significant improvement (Hazard Ratio (HR) 0.21, p<0.0001) in progression free survival (PFS), which was the primary objective of the study. The most common lenvatinib treatment-related adverse events (events with an incidence rate of at least 40%) were hypertension, diarrhea, decreased appetite, weight loss and nausea. The number of patients newly diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2012 in the U.S. and Europe was estimated to be approximately 52,000 and 53,000, respectively. Although treatment is possible for most types of thyroid cancer, there are few treatment options available once thyroid cancer has progressed, therefore it remains a disease with significant unmet medical needs. Eisai is committed to exploring the potential clinical benefits of lenvatinib in order to further contribute to patients with cancer, including patients with thyroid cancer, and their families.