Shire buys rights to arGEN-X technology for rare diseases

Dutch/Belgian preclinical stage biotech company arGEN-X, focused on the discovery and development of human monoclonal antibodies from its proprietary SIMPLE Antibody platform, has entered into an alliance with Ireland headquartered drugmaker Shire (LSE: SHP) to create novel therapeutic antibody products against multiple targets submitted by Shire.

Under the terms of the deal, arGEN-X will receive an upfront technology access fee, research funding and preclinical success payments. In return for its option to develop and commercialize products on an exclusive basis, Shire will pay fees, milestones and royalties on product sales. Specific details of the financial terms were not disclosed.

Using its SIMPLE Antibody discovery technology, arGEN-X will isolate and characterize human antibodies against the targets that Shire has identified and that are known to contribute to the pathophysiology of severe, rare genetic diseases. arGEN-X will also bring its state-of-the-art antibody capabilities to the collaboration for the preclinical characterization of therapeutic leads. Shire has the option to license the most promising leads for further preclinical and clinical development and commercialization worldwide.

Novel, first-in-class therapies anticipated

Tim Van Hauwermeiren, chief executive of arGEN-X, said: “We are delighted to pioneer human antibodies as novel, first-in-class therapies for rare diseases with a partner of Shire’s calibre. Shire’s depth of experience in protein-based therapies is the perfect complement to our own discovery capabilities. We are confident that our SIMPLE Antibody platform, which consistently delivers antibodies of therapeutic quality against complex targets often intractable with other technologies, will bring significant value to this alliance. We believe this alliance represents an industry first and we are looking forward to an exciting and productive collaboration with Shire.”

“As a leader in innovative therapies for rare diseases, Shire is continuing to apply new technologies to address the needs of patients,” said Philip Vickers, senior vice president, R&D, at Shire Human Genetic Therapies (HGT). “Monoclonal antibody therapy is an underutilized approach to the treatment of rare diseases, and this novel platform has the potential to bring multiple drug candidates into our early-stage pipeline. Partnerships such as this one with arGEN-X are an important part of our strategy to bring new therapies to those suffering from rare diseases worldwide,” he added.

Antibody leads generated from the SIMPLE Antibody platform have outstanding physicochemical properties and consistent manufacturability, enabling a seamless transition from discovery into development, noted arGEN-X which adds that it has validated its technology on multiple diverse classes of target to date and has successfully delivered in its collaboration with US drug major Eli Lilly.