US-based pharma company Gilead Sciences has agreed to acquire the remaining rights to Jounce Therapeutics’ phase 1 cancer immunotherapy GS-1811 for $67m.
Jounce and Gilead inked a licensing and development agreement in August 2020.
Both firms have now agreed to amend the agreement, enabling Gilead to buy out the remaining contingent payments. Gilead is now responsible for all further research, development and marketing of GS-1811 globally.
Under the deal, a few operational obligations related to GS-1811, an anti-CCR8 antibody, set forth in the license agreement have also been stopped.
According to the terms of the deal agreement, Gilead will purchase certain relevant intellectual property, including all of Jounce’s unclaimed rights to GS-1811.
GS-1811 is said to be a potential immunotherapy to selectively reduce immunosuppressive tumour-infiltrating T regulatory cells in the tumour microenvironment.
Currently, it is undergoing Phase 1 clinical testing as a potential treatment for patients with solid tumours.
Jounce chief executive officer and president Richard Murray said: “We are pleased to announce the signing of this transaction with Gilead, who have a strong track record of developing and successfully commercialising leading brands in biotechnology.
“This transaction allows us to extend our runway and remain focused on delivering meaningful and long-lasting benefits to cancer patients.
“It was important for Jounce at this time to bolster our cash resources, given challenges in capital markets for biotech companies.”
Under the original licence agreement, Jounce will no longer be eligible to receive the final contingent payments of up to $645m in milestone payments and high single-digit to mid-teens royalties based on global sales, Gilead said.
Recently, Gilead received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its Sunlenca drug as a combination treatment with other antiretrovirals(s) (ARV).
It is intended for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) in heavily treatment-experienced (HTE) adults with multi-drug resistant (MDR) infection.
