BRIEF—Ono inks small molecule deal with Repare

Japanese drugmaker Ono Pharmaceutical (TYO: 4528) could pay privately-held precision oncology company Repare Therapeutics up to 18.9 billion yen ($175 million) as part of a licensing deal.

The companies have entered an exclusive agreement for development and commercialization of Repare’s small molecule Pol-theta inhibitor in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong/Macau and South East Asian countries.

Montreal-based Repare is pioneering synthetic lethality to develop new therapeutics targeting specific vulnerabilities of tumors in clearly defined patient populations.

The total paid to Repare is 1.7 billion yen upfront and could reach 18.9 billion yen including milestone payments. Ono will also pay Repare high-single digit to low double-digit royalties on any sales.