Under the agreement, GTC will establish the appropriate cell lines and demonstrate production over the next 12 months. JCOM has the option for exclusive marketing rights in Asia.
JCOM will compensate GTC for successful development of the transgenic production system as well as a license fee. JCOM will also pay GTC a royalty on any commercial sales of the products.
The agreement contemplates JCOM’s establishment of a transgenic production system for recombinant human insulin products in Korea.
Geoffrey Cox, chairman and CEO of GTC, said: We are pleased to enable JCOM to pursue the development of insulin products utilizing our first-in-class transgenic technology platform for the production of human therapeutic proteins.
JCOM is a biotechnology company specializing in cloning and stem cell research. JCOM is affiliated with Dong-A Pharmaceutical, one of Korea’s leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies. Dong-A has a growing pipeline of biopharmaceutical products.
GTC Biotherapeutics develops, supplies, and commercializes therapeutic proteins produced through transgenic animal technology. GTC’s recombinant human antithrombin, ATryn has been approved for use in the United States and Europe.