Abide Therapeutics, Celgene form Drug Development Pact
Abide Therapeutics has entered into a strategic collaboration with Celgene Corporation to discover and develop new drugs in inflammation and immunology. Abide has developed technologies to selectively target serine hydrolases, an enzyme families involved in regulating human physiology. Under the terms of the agreement, Celgene paid to Abide an upfront payment. Celgene will take a small equity stake in Abide and will retain an exclusive option to acquire the company. Abide can earn additional payments if Celgene exercises its option to license the rest of the world rights on the first two products that reach the clinic. Furthermore, Abide may receive additional milestone payments upon successful development of those programs. Abide's existing venture investor, Cardinal Partners, also participated in the equity financing.
During the collaboration, Abide will apply its technology platform, which can selectively and near-universally target the more than 200 members of the serine hydrolase family to discover new therapeutic targets and drug candidates for the treatment of inflammation and immunological disorders. Included in the collaboration is Abide's most advanced compound, AB101131, which is estimated to enter first human studies in 2015. Abide expects to generate another three to four developmental candidates during the term of the collaboration.
Source: Abide Therapeutics