On February 16, 2021 Cend Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biotech company, and Qilu Pharmaceutical, a major Chinese pharmaceutical company, reported that the companies have entered a Collaboration and License Agreement to develop and commercialize Cend’s investigational drug, CEND-1, in Greater China (Press release, CEND Therapeutics, FEB 16, 2021, View Source [SID1234575230]).
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Cend presented favorable clinical results at the European Society for Molecular Oncology (ESMO) (Free ESMO Whitepaper) meeting September 2020 and is advancing into Phase 2 clinical trials in pancreatic cancer with CEND-1 in combination with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel. The Company is planning registration clinical trials in pancreatic cancer and will explore combinations with additional therapies, including immunotherapies, as well as expansion of its programs into additional solid tumor cancers.
"This partnership with Qilu will help us bring our treatment to patients with pancreatic and other solid tumor cancers in China. This collaboration will also speed global development to bring the treatment to market expeditiously. Qilu’s excellent development team and market position will position CEND-1 for success in China," commented David Slack, CEO of Cend.
"CEND-1 has generated encouraging clinical results in combination with standard of care chemotherapy for the treatment of pancreatic cancer, which remains a significant health issue in China. We are pleased to work with Cend to advance this program and explore broader potential applications for CEND-1," commented Oliver Kong, MD, Chief Medical Officer and Corporate Vice President of Qilu.
About the Qilu-Cend Partnership
In the Collaboration and License Agreement, Qilu will gain exclusive rights to CEND-1 in Greater China, including Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. Qilu will take on development as well as commercialization responsibilities within Greater China. Cend will continue to retain all rights outside of Greater China. Qilu will pay Cend an up-front license fee of US$10 million. Cend will be eligible to receive up to $225 million in milestones as well as tiered double digit royalties on product sales in the region.
About CEND-1
CEND-1 is an investigational drug that modifies the tumor microenvironment. It is targeted to tumors by its affinity for alpha-v integrins, which are selectively expressed in tumors but not normally expressed in healthy tissues. CEND-1 is a cyclic peptide that, once bound to these integrins, is cleaved by protease expressed in tumors to release a peptide fragment, called a CendR fragment, which binds to a second receptor, called neuropilin, to activate a novel uptake pathway that causes anticancer drugs to more selectively penetrate solid tumors. CEND-1 has also been shown to further modify the tumor microenvironment by selectively depleting tumor-infiltrating immunosuppressive cells, including T regulatory cells, and to increase the number of cancer-fighting immune cells within the tumor, potentially enabling patients’ immune systems or immunotherapies to more effectively fight cancer.