NicOx has given Pfizer exclusive rights, across the entire field of ophthalmology, to use its proprietary nitric oxide-donating technology. Pfizer will make payments of $27.3 million in the first year of the collaboration, and pay milestones in excess of $356.2 million.
Under the new agreement, Pfizer has also agreed to make an equity investment in NicOx, at a 4.9% premium to the company’s share price at the time of purchase. This equity purchase is subject to NicOx shareholder approval and will take place during 2006.
“We believe NicOx’ nitric oxide-donating technology has the potential to generate promising new drug candidates for a broad range of eye diseases, a number of which currently have no effective treatment,” said Martin Mackay, senior vice-president of worldwide research & technology at Pfizer.
In other news, recent results from an ongoing research agreement between the two companies confirmed the effectiveness of a NicOx glaucoma compound, showing it to be better than the reference drug tested in a validated in vivo model of abnormally high intraocular pressure. This collaboration with Pfizer is focused on the development of more effective treatments for glaucoma also using NicOx’ proprietary nitric oxide-donating technology.