Akcea and Ionis partner with Pfizer on CV and metabolic diseases

7 October 2019

Shares of Akcea Therapeutics (Nasdaq: AKCA), a majority-owned affiliate of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: IONS), leapt 22.3% to $18.50 in pre-market trading today, after the companies revealed a worldwide exclusive licensing agreement for AKCEA-ANGPTL3-LRx, an investigational antisense therapy being developed to treat patients with certain cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, with US pharma giant Pfizer (NYSE: PFE).

AKCEA-ANGPTL3-LRx is designed to reduce the production of angiopoietin-like 3 (ANGPTL3) protein in the liver, a key regulator of triglycerides, cholesterol, glucose and energy metabolism. AKCEA-ANGPTL3-LRx is currently being evaluated in a Phase II study in patients with type 2 diabetes, hypertriglyceridemia and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Stand to earn $250 million license fee

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