Lilly licenses pomaglumetad methionil to Denovo as potential schizophrenia therapy

US drug major Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) has licensed late-stage neuroscience drug pomaglumetad methionil (mGlu2/3 receptor agonist) to Denovo Biopharma.

Denovo will gain all rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize pomaglumetad methionil, including the transfer of all intellectual property and other rights, data and information. Lilly has the option to re-acquire pomaglumetad methionil upon the successful completion of a clinical trial, for predetermined undisclosed financial terms.

Pomaglumetad methionil was developed and primarily tested in schizophrenia, including Phase II and Phase III trials. It did not meet the primary endpoint in the intent-to-treat population at Phase III, but predefined sub-population analysis and post-hoc analysis in multiple studies showed a subset of patients with significantly improved outcomes. Denovo will use its proprietary platform to identify genetic biomarkers as a companion diagnostic to screen for appropriate subsets in future trials.