Under the agreement, Allergan and Polyphor will conduct a research program designed to identify compounds that are optimally suited for local delivery to the eye in combination with Allergan’s proprietary drug delivery systems. Allergan will progress compounds arising from the research collaboration through clinical development.
Polyphor will receive an upfront payment of $7 million from Allergan and is entitled to receive up to $61 million in research, development and first commercial sales milestones, plus royalties on product sales.
Jean-Pierre Obrecht, CEO of Polyphor, said: “I am delighted about this agreement with Allergan, which is another important milestone for our company. After the scientific proof of concept, we now have a first commercial validation of Polyphor’s proprietary protein epitope mimetics (PEM) Technology. Allergan’s expertise and experience will allow us to explore the full therapeutic and commercial potential of PEM inhibitors in ophthalmology.”