ArQule, Daiichi Sankyo expand oncology drug research agreement

The expanded agreement establishes a third therapeutic target, with an option for a fourth, in the field of oncology, and it includes a two-year extension based on the application of the proprietary ArQule Kinase Inhibitor Platform (AKIP) technology.

Daiichi Sankyo Research global head Hideyuki Haruyama expects that the expansion of this collaboration will produce other drug candidates and lay the foundation for future growth in this field.

The economic terms of the expanded agreement include payments for research support, licensing fees for compounds discovered as a result of this research, milestone payments related to clinical development, regulatory review and sales, and tiered royalty payments on net sales of each product.

Under the pact, Daiichi Sankyo will have an option to license compounds directed to the targets following the completion of certain pre-clinical studies.

However, ArQule retains the option to co-commercialise any resulting licensed products in the US.

ArQule chief scientific officer Thomas CK Chan said that their initial drug discovery collaboration has identified a development candidate for one target, and they are optimising advanced lead compounds for the other target.

"The expansion of this collaboration will continue to deploy AKIP technology to discover inhibitors with novel modes of action for additional oncology targets over the next two years," Chan said.