Under the agreement, Kaken has secured an option to acquire commercial rights to the antibody in select Asian territories.
In return, the company will fund the preclinical and clinical development stages up to Phase IIa proof of concept.
Numab will receive an upfront payment of approximately CHF13m ($14.63m) and will lead the preclinical and clinical development processes.
The company specialises in creating multi-specific antibody-based immunotherapies for cancer and inflammation.
Its platforms, λ-Cap and MATCH, enable a reproducible therapeutic design process that aims to overcome traditional drug discovery challenges.
Numab Therapeutics founder and CEO David Urech said: “We are excited to once again join forces with Kaken to advance one of our multi-specific programmes to the clinic as a continuation of our regional partnering strategy aimed at utilising Numab’s unique proprietary λ-Cap and MATCH technology platforms.
“This partnership in IBD represents a validated approach for both Numab and Kaken and is built out of a strong relationship that we established from our prior collaboration on NM26, an investigational first-in-class bi-specific antibody for the treatment of atopic dermatitis, which led to an asset spin out into Yellow Jersey Therapeutics and its subsequent acquisition by Johnson & Johnson for $1.25bn in May 2024.”
The company’s flagship product, NM32, is a first-in-class half-life-enhanced T-cell engager that targets ROR1, a tumour-associated antigen prevalent in various solid tumours and haematological malignancies.
NM32 is currently undergoing a Phase I clinical trial for patients with solid tumours.