PharmaMar (MCE: PHM) has announced today the signing of an exclusive licensing agreement with Seattle Genetics Inc. (SGEN: NASDAQ GS) under which Seattle Genetics receives exclusive worldwide rights to certain PharmaMar proprietary molecules for the development, manufacture and commercialization of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) and/or other drug conjugates incorporating PharmaMar payloads.
According to the terms of the agreement, PharmaMar receives an upfront payment of 5,000,000 US dollars on signing, followed by development milestones if a product enters clinical development conducted by Seattle Genetics. In addition, PharmaMar is eligible for potential approval and sales milestones as well as royalties, once a product receives regulatory approval and is commercialized.
PharmaMar has a Marine Payloads unit. These are new, structurally diverse molecules with novel mechanisms of action that provide a unique opportunity to develop next generation ADCs. These payloads are highly potent, with sub-nanomolar cytotoxic activity. ADCs are targeted cancer treatments designed to harness the specificity of antibodies to deliver cell-killing agents directly to cancer cells.
As Luis Mora, Managing Director of PharmaMar’s Oncology Business Unit, stated, “We are glad to sign this license agreement with Seattle Genetics, a pioneer and leading company in the ADC market, because it allows us to work together in these cutting-edge cancer treatments.“
The payloads department at PharmaMar is new, placing the company as a supplier of cytotoxic products, necessary for all companies working within the field of ADCs.
About Seattle Genetics Inc.
Seattle Genetics Inc is a biotechnology company that develops and commercializes monoclonal antibody-based therapies for the treatment of cancer. Seattle Genetics is headquartered in Bothell, Washington (US)http://www.seattlegenetics.com.
About PharmaMar
Headquartered in Madrid, PharmaMar is a world-leading biopharmaceutical company in the discovery and development of innovative marine-derived anticancer drugs. The company has a pipeline of drug candidates and a robust R&D oncology program. PharmaMar develops and commercializes YONDELIS® in Europe and has three other clinical-stage programs under development for several types of solid and hematological cancers, lurbinectedin, plitidepsin, PM184 and PM14. PharmaMar is a global biopharmaceutical company with subsidiaries in Germany, Italy, France, Switzerland, United Kingdom, To learn more about PharmaMar, please visit us at http://www.pharmamar.com
