Lining up squarely behind its new lead drug, Infinity Pharmaceuticals ($INFI) has tailored its licensing deal with Takeda's Millennium. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech has agreed to pay Takeda $15 million and in exchange Millennium is ripping up its option to bag a 50/50 split on any of Infinity's PI3K inhibitors, including the lead program for IPI-145. Infinity also announced that it paid Millennium a $5 million development milestone for the August 2012 launch of the Phase IIa clinical trial of IPI-145 in patients with asthma.
Infinity has been forced to restructure over the course of 2012 after its original lead drug saridegib failed a slate of clinical trials. Infinity, a 2005 Fierce 15 company, scooped up the global development and commercialization rights to a portfolio of oral PI3K inhibitors developed by Intellikine back in the summer of 2010. And late last year Takeda acquired Intellikine and its business deals in a $310 million buyout pact.
"We believe that the potency of IPI-145 against both PI3K-delta and PI3K-gamma contribute to its potential to become the best-in-class PI3K inhibitor," stated Lawrence Bloch, M.D., J.D., executive vice president, chief financial officer and chief business officer of Infinity. "Infinity is focused on rapidly advancing IPI-145 and additional follow-on PI3K product candidates with the goal that patients, our shareholders and other financial stakeholders, including Millennium, will benefit from their development and commercialization."
"We have had a successful relationship with Infinity since the December 2011 acquisition of Intellikine by Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited," said Kyle Kuvalanka, vice president, business development and corporate strategy and development of Millennium. "We look forward to Infinity's continued progress and to participating in the downstream value of its PI3K program through future milestone and royalty payments."
- here's the press release