Cethrin was designed to specifically target the cellular response to an acute spinal cord injury (SCI), promote the re-growth of injured axons, and restore sensory and motor function. In November 2006, BioAxone reported interim results from a phase I/IIa trial of Cethrin in acute spinal cord injury patients indicating drug safety, tolerability and the potential to promote recovery of motor function and sensation.
“The licensing of Cethrin enables us to continue toward our goal of transforming BLSI into a CNS-focused therapeutics company,” said BLSI CEO, Peter Savas. “This license represents another successful step in our strategy to assemble, develop and commercialize compelling axon regeneration technologies.”
The National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center estimates that the direct lifetime care costs for a patient with the most-severe injury and complete loss of function below the injury site is $2.9 million. Restoring even limited function to patients could reduce total medical costs by millions of dollars each year and improve the quality of life for patients and their families.
The BioAxone agreement provides for an up-front license fee of $10 million payable in two installments and possible performance milestones of up to $25 million. The FDA has designated Cethrin as an orphan drug.