On December 18, 2018 Epizyme, Inc. (Nasdaq: EPZM), a clinical-stage company developing novel epigenetic therapies, reported it has earned an $8 million milestone payment from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) (Press release, Epizyme, DEC 18, 2018, View Source [SID1234532125]). The milestone payment follows GSK’s initiation of patient dosing in a Phase 1 clinical trial of GSK3368715, a first-in-class protein arginine methyltransferase1 (PRMT1) inhibitor discovered by Epizyme and licensed to GSK. PRMT1 has been implicated in a number of human cancers.
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"We are very pleased to see the progress that GSK has made with its PRMT1 inhibitor program, which marks the second program under our collaboration agreement to enter the clinic," said Robert Bazemore, president and chief executive officer of Epizyme. "This milestone reinforces the promising role that epigenetic medicines may play in treating a variety of diseases, and our leadership in the discovery of novel epigenetic targets. It also validates our strategic business model of establishing collaborations that allow us to focus our internal resources on our lead programs, while facilitating the advancement of novel treatments for people with cancer. We look forward to GSK’s continued progress with this clinical program."
This Phase 1 study by GSK will assess the safety, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and preliminary clinical activity of GSK33368715 in patients with relapsed and/or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and selected solid tumors with frequent methyl-thioadenosine phosphorylase (MTAP)-deficiency.
About the Epizyme-GSK Collaboration
Under the terms of its collaboration and license agreement with GSK, Epizyme granted GSK exclusive worldwide license rights to methyltransferase inhibitors directed to three targets. Using its proprietary drug discovery platform, Epizyme discovered and optimized compounds targeting three methyltransferases. During the research term of the collaboration, which has been completed, Epizyme was primarily responsible for preclinical research on such compounds. GSK is responsible for subsequent research, development and commercialization of each program. Epizyme has earned an aggregate of $89 million in up-front, research and milestone payments to date, and may receive up to an additional $375 million from GSK if all remaining milestones are met. Epizyme is eligible to receive up to double-digit royalties on worldwide net sales of collaboration products