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On Friday, Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) and Vanqua Bio announced a license agreement granting Biogen exclusive worldwide rights to Vanqua's preclinical, oral C5aR1 antagonist. The agreement strengthens Biogen's immunology.
The agreement complements Biogen's early-stage immunology pipeline by adding an oral mechanism with potential applicability across multiple immune-mediated diseases.
C5aR1 plays a pivotal role in driving critical components of the immune cascade involved in tissue inflammation, particularly in neutrophil-mediated conditions.
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Preclinically, the program has demonstrated inhibition of complement activation of pathogenic immune cells, and a preclinical safety and tolerability profile supportive of advancing the compound into clinical development. If results continue to be supportive, Biogen would expect to file an IND in 2027.
Vanqua will receive a $70 million upfront payment and is eligible to receive up to $990 million in potential milestone payments and potential sales royalties.
Biogen will lead all future development, manufacturing, and commercialization efforts.
William Blair wrote, "We continue to see developing excitement about Biogen's late-stage neurology and immunology pipeline, which may provide a longer-term solution to the eroding MS franchise and slower-than-anticipated Leqembi launch."
Analyst Myles Minter sees increasing focus on immunology assets to build the pipeline, including Vanqua deal, and the company's recent R&D webinar focused on Biogen's lupus programs.
However, readouts and commercialization prospects for many of these assets are several years away, keeping investors focused on more M&A prospects with later-stage assets and more near-term value inflection points.
Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) received FDA approval of Tavneos in 2021 for certain types of ANCA-associated vasculitis but carries risks of hepatotoxicity (liver damage).
Vanqua's VQ-201 is being developed as a first-in-class CNS-penetrant C5aR1 antagonist with greater target coverage, addressing these safety liabilities to potentially broaden its use across indications.
InflaRx N.V. (NASDAQ:IFRX) is also developing INF904, a C5aR1 receptor negative allosteric modulator, in a Phase 2 trial of immuno-dermatology indications.
Tavneos has also been evaluated in rare renal disease trials, but failed the Phase 2 ACCOLADE trial in C3 glomerulopathy.
Analyst Minter added that potential applications of Biogen's newly acquired C5aR1 antagonist program in renal disease should be cautiously viewed.
BIIB Price Action: Biogen shares were down 0.21% at $149.76 at the time of publication on Friday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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