Roche gets BioCryst license to help develop, commercialize BCX-4208

By Ted A. Knutson

Washington, Nov. 30 - Roche and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced Wednesday an exclusive license to develop and commercialize BioCryst's phase I compound, BCX-4208, for the prevention of acute rejection in transplantation and for the treatment of autoimmune diseases.

Under the terms of the agreement, Roche will obtain worldwide rights to BCX-4208 in exchange for a $25 million up-front payment and a $5 million payment as reimbursement for supply of material during the first 24 months of the collaboration.

Future event payments could reach $530 million in addition to royalties on product sales of BCX-4208. For five years, Roche will have a right of first negotiation on existing back-up purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) inhibitors in transplant rejection or autoimmune diseases. BioCryst retains the right to co-promote BCX-4208 in the United States for several indications. Any new PNP inhibitor discovered subsequent to this agreement will be exempt from this agreement and BioCryst will retain all rights to such compounds.

"This collaboration not only produces a substantial strategic and economic benefit to BioCryst, it also provides all of the essential elements for the rapid, comprehensive and competitive development of BCX-4208," said Charles E. Bugg, BioCryst's chairman and chief executive officer, in the news release.

BCX-4208 is a transition-state PNP inhibitor believed to have a potent ability to modulate T-cell activity. T-cells help the body determine when to initiate immune responses and when to accept or reject newly transplanted organs. By specifically modulating T-cell activity, BCX-4208 may offer transplant and autoimmune patients a more effective and tolerable treatment.

"As a new therapeutic agent with a novel mechanism of action, it has the potential to offer significant improvement in treatment for transplant recipients and patients suffering from autoimmune related diseases," said Peter Hug, Roche's global head of pharma partnering, in the release.

Birmingham, Ala.-based BioCryst develops drugs that block key enzymes involved in cancer, cardiovascular diseases, autoimmune diseases and viral infections.

Basel, Switzerland-based Roche is one of the world's largest drug companies.

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