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news.CalciMedica, a developer of small molecule drugs, has announced that it will exercise its exclusive option to acquire intellectual property pertaining to STIM1, a key target in the Icrac immune system pathway, and CRAC channel inhibitors for use in the field of central nervous system disorders from biopharmaceutical company TorreyPines Therapeutics.
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Under the terms of the agreement, TorreyPines will receive an upfront payment and is eligible to receive milestone and royalty payments for future products based on the licensed technology.
In April 2007, the companies agreed to the transfer of STIM1 technology and CRAC channel inhibitors from TorreyPines to CalciMedica for use in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, with an option for CalciMedica to acquire the central nervous system (CNS) rights.
CalciMedica’s technology platform is based on exploiting the immunomodulatory potential of intervening in the Icrac cell signaling immune response pathway by targeting Orai1 and STIM1, the principal components of the CRAC channel complex.
Ev Graham, acting CEO of TorreyPines, said: We are delighted to expand our existing agreement with CalciMedica, marking another step forward in our strategy to monetize non-core assets and focus our resources on rapidly advancing our clinical stage product candidates. CalciMedica is well positioned to explore the full potential of this technology and we look forward to their continued progress.
Gonul Velicelebi, president and CEO of CalciMedica, said: Acquiring additional rights to STIM1 technology and CRAC channel inhibitors completes our ownership of fields of use covering all therapeutic areas, now including the development of novel immunomodulators to treat important CNS diseases such as multiple sclerosis.