TMCnet News
XOMA Acquires Royalty and Milestone Interest in Checkmate's Vidutolimod (CMP-001) from Kuros BiosciencesEMERYVILLE, Calif., July 15, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- XOMA Corporation (NASDAQ: XOMA), announced today it has acquired the royalty interest position Kuros Biosciences holds in Checkmate Pharmaceuticals’ vidutolimod (CMP-001), an advanced-generation Toll-like receptor 9 agonist packaged in a virus-like particle, for $7.0 million upfront plus sales milestones. Vidutolimod is designed to trigger the body’s innate immune system to attack tumors in combination with other therapies. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Fast Track designation to vidutolimod for the treatment of certain types of metastatic or unresectable melanoma and an Orphan Drug designation for Stages IIb - IV melanoma. “We were drawn to vidutolimod because of the breadth of Checkmate’s development activities,” said Jim Neal, Chief Executive Officer at XOMA. “Checkmate currently is enrolling patients in a study with anti-PD-1 refractory advanced melanoma in combination with Bristol Myers Squibb’s Opdivo® (nivolumab), a PD-1 blocking antibody, that is designed to serve as a registrational study. Checkmate also is pursuing a Phase 2/3 study in front line melanoma patients in combination with Opdivo and a study in patients with head and neck cancer and is planning a study in three indications in collaboration with Regeneron in non-melanoma skin cancers.” Under the terms of the agreement, XOMA has acquired all future potential royalties from commercial sales of vidutolimod, which are tiered from high-single to double digits. XOMA could receive up to $25 million in pre-commercial milestones associated with the Kuros/Checkmate license agreement. Kuros will be eligible to receive certain sales milestone payments from XOMA based on net sales of vidutolimod. About XOMA Corporation Safe Harbor Statement EXPLANATORY NOTE: Any references to “portfolio” in this press release refer strictly to milestone and/or royalty rights associated with a basket of drug products in development. Any references to “assets” in this press release refer strictly to milestone and/or royalty rights associated with individual drug products in development. References to royalties or royalty rates strictly refer to future potential payment streams regardless of whether or not they are technically defined as royalties in the underlying contractual agreement; further, any rates referenced herein are subject to potential future contractual adjustments. As of the date of this press release, all assets in XOMA’s milestone and royalty portfolio, including vidutolimod, are investigational compounds. Efficacy and safety have not been established. There is no guarantee that any of these assets will become commercially available.
|