Endocyte licenses technology to Bristol-Myers Squibb

The license is a result of an ongoing collaborative research effort between the two companies to create novel folate conjugates of Bristol-Myers Squibb’s proprietary epothilone compounds. The conjugates created in the collaboration are anticipated to spare healthy cells from the toxic effects of chemotherapy.

Under the terms of the license, Endocyte will receive a $3 million license payment, milestone payments and royalties on the sales of any products that result from the license. Bristol-Myers Squibb is responsible for all development, manufacturing, registration and marketing of the resulting products.

“Our goal was to construct a tumor-targeted analog of a very potent drug, one that would preserve efficacy but also reduce the opportunity for negative side effects,” said Dr Christopher Leamon, vice president of research at Endocyte.