Numab Therapeutics and Ono Pharmaceutical Enter Development and License Agreement for Multispecific Antibody Candidate Involving Novel Immuno-Oncology Target

March 31, 2022 |

3 min read

Numab Therapeutics AG and Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. announced that Ono has exercised its option to enter into a development and license agreement for a multispecific antibody candidate that was generated through a research collaboration between the two companies initiated in 2017.

WÄDENSWIL, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Numab Therapeutics AG (“Numab”) and Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (“Ono”) today announced that Ono has exercised its option to enter into a development and license agreement for a multispecific antibody candidate that was generated through a research collaboration between the two companies initiated in 2017. Under the terms of the license agreement, Ono acquires intellectual property rights and exclusive global development and commercialization rights for a multispecific antibody targeting a novel immuno-oncology target. In consideration for the discovery work and the license, Numab will receive up to CHF 258 million in research funding, upfront and milestone payments plus tiered single to double digit royalties on future sales.

“We are proud to have advanced this novel multispecific antibody candidate against a new and very challenging immuno-oncology target to this milestone,” said David Urech, Ph.D., Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Numab. “The licensing of the asset is an affirmation of our platform’s ability to create novel and unique pharmacology. We look forward to our continued partnership with Ono as we have been further collaborating on our shared mission of developing next generation immuno-oncology therapeutics for patients with cancer.”

“We hope that the program candidate generated through our work with Numab will become a therapeutic option for patients with cancer who may benefit from this new treatment modality,” said Toichi Takino, Senior Executive Officer / Executive Director, Discovery & Research of Ono Pharmaceutical. “Through the synergy between Numab’s multispecific antibody platform and Ono’s deep immuno-oncology expertise, we are continuously committed to fueling our diverse drug discovery efforts to advance our immuno-oncology pipeline.”

In March 2020, Numab and Ono expanded their alliance by executing a second research and option agreement to discover and develop a multispecific antibody drug candidate for the treatment of various cancers.

About Numab Therapeutics

Numab Therapeutics is an oncology-focused biopharmaceutical company based in Zurich-area, Switzerland. At Numab, we are writing the next chapter in cancer immunotherapy by creating multispecific antibodies that enable the pursuit of novel therapeutic strategies. With our proprietary MATCH technology platform, we are fueling a new wave of multispecific drug candidates engineered with versatility and developability in mind. Our lead product was designed to balance potent anti-tumor immunity with a desirable safety profile by targeting 4-1BB, PD-L1 and Serum Albumin simultaneously. We believe meeting the highest quality standards in every step of the drug design process matters and will result in better patient outcomes. For further information, visit www.numab.com.

About Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., headquartered in Osaka, is an R&D-oriented pharmaceutical company committed to creating innovative medicines in specific areas. Ono focuses its research on the oncology, immunology, neurology and specialty research with high medical needs as priority areas for discovery and development of innovative medicines. For further information, please visit the company’s website at www.ono-pharma.com.