HGS to develop, commercialize FivePrime Therapeutics novel anti-cancer drug

FivePrime, a clinical-stage, privately-held, biotechnology company discovering and developing innovative protein and antibody therapeutics, will retain minority co-promotion rights in the US and full development and commercialization rights in all other regions of the world outside the US, Canada and the EU, including Asia, Latin America and non-EU nations in Europe, including Russia.

At FivePrime’s request, HGS will supply FivePrime with FP-1039 for use in the rest of world territories.

Under the terms of the agreement, HGS will pay FivePrime an upfront license fee of $50m and FivePrime will be eligible to receive up to $445m in future development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments.

FP-1039, a first-in-class ligand trap that binds to and inhibits most members of the FGF (Fibroblast Growth Factor) family, is designed to neutralize the activity of multiple FGF ligands and inhibit their signaling through all FGF receptors.

Data indicate that FP-1039 is a very effective inhibitor of the complex and crucial FGF signaling pathway.

Furthermore, FP-1039 is expected to exert a dual effect on cancer cells both as a result of direct inhibition of tumor cell growth and through inhibition of tumor-associated angiogenesis – both of which are FGF-mediated processes.

FivePrime has active collaborations with Pfizer in the fields of oncology and diabetes and GlaxoSmithKline for skeletal muscle disorders.