Curis in-licenses cancer candidate from Genentech

US drug development firm Curis (Nasdaq: CRIS) that it has licensed from Genentech, a subsidiary of Swiss pharma major Roche (ROG: SIX), exclusive, worldwide rights for the development and commercialization of GDC-0917, a small molecule that is designed to promote cancer cell death by antagonizing inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) proteins.

Under the terms of the license agreement, Curis will have the sole right and responsibility for all research, development, manufacturing and commercialization activities related to the compound, dubbed CUDC-427 by the US firm. Curis will pay Genentech $9.5 million for an up-front license payment and technology transfer costs. In addition, Genentech is entitled to receive milestone payments upon the first commercial sale of CUDC-427 in certain territories and royalties on net sales of the drug.

"We are very pleased to have entered into this agreement for GDC-0917, which adds depth to our current pipeline of proprietary targeted anti-cancer agents and further solidifies our relationship with our partner Genentech," said Dan Passeri, Curis' president and chief executive. "Importantly, we anticipate that the $30 million non-dilutive royalty financing transaction that we also announced this morning will provide us with sufficient capital to progress GDC-0917 and our other programs to important development milestones," he added.