WILMINGTON, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- NiKang Therapeutics Inc. (“NiKang”), a clinical stage biotech company focused on developing innovative small molecule oncology medicines to help patients with unmet medical needs and Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group Company Limited (“Hansoh Pharma”, 3692.HK), a China and US based leading biopharmaceutical company, today announced an exclusive collaboration and license agreement for the development and commercialization of NKT2152, for the treatment of cancer in Greater China, including Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

“Hansoh is a leader in the development and commercialization of small molecules for the treatment of cancer in China. We are thrilled to collaborate with them to strategically advance NKT2152 and expand its reach as a potential treatment for multiple tumor types,” said Zhenhai Gao, Ph.D., Co-founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of NiKang. “By combining NiKang’s precision oncology expertise with Hansoh’s proven development and commercialization capabilities in Greater China, we believe that we will be able to accelerate global development of NKT2152 and bring it as a potential novel cancer treatment to China patients sooner.”

“We are excited to enter into this agreement and we look forward to working with NiKang, a leader in developing innovative small molecule oncology medicines,” said Yuan Sun, Executive Director of the Board of Hansoh Pharma. “HIF2α plays an important role in the development and progression of kidney and other cancers. Based on the sound biology, excellent potency and PK profile observed in preclinical studies, we believe NKT2152 has the potential to become a best-in-class molecule to address this important pathway. Our extensive expertise in oncology drug development can help accelerate development and advance NKT2152 as quickly as possible for cancer patients in China.”

Under the terms of the agreement, NiKang will receive an upfront cash payment of $15 million and will be eligible to receive up to $203 million in potential development, regulatory and sales-based milestone payments, and tiered royalties. Hansoh will be responsible for all the development costs for NKT2152 in Greater China and will receive the exclusive rights to develop and commercialize NKT2152 in the region.

About NKT2152

NKT2152 is a small molecule that inhibits HIF2α. It is currently in a phase 1/2 dose escalation and expansion trial (NCT05119335). This trial is designed to evaluate safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and clinical activity in patients with advanced ccRCC.

About NiKang Therapeutics

NiKang Therapeutics is a clinical stage biotech company focused on discovering and developing innovative small molecule oncology medicines to help patients with unmet medical needs. Our target selection is driven by deep insights into disease biology and molecular pathways. Our discovery approach is informed by target structure biology and capitalizes on structure-based drug design. The successful implementation of our strategy enables us to rapidly and efficiently discover and advance proprietary drugs. For more information, visit www.nikangtx.com.

About Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group Company Limited

Hansoh Pharma (3692.HK), one of the largest biopharmaceutical companies in China, is committed to discovering and developing life-changing medicines to help patients conquer serious diseases and disorders. Hansoh Pharma is supported by a total of 12,150 dedicated employees in China and the United States.

Founded in 1995, Hansoh Pharma has fully integrated research and development, manufacturing, and commercial capabilities, supporting leading positions across a broad range of therapeutic areas, including oncology, central nervous system (CNS) disorders, infectious diseases, metabolic diseases and other main therapeutic areas. With the support of about 1,650 highly skilled R&D professionals, Hansoh Pharma has successfully developed multiple internally discovered drug candidates into NMPA-approved innovative medicines, including Aumolertinib (Ameile^®, 阿美乐^®), a third-generation EGFR inhibitor for the treatment of NSCLC with EGFR mutations; Flumatinib (Xinfu^®, 昕福^®), a second-generation BCR-ABL inhibitor for frontline treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML); PEG-Loxenatide (Fulaimei^®, 孚来美^®), the first once-weekly long-acting GLP-1 analogue discovered and developed in China for the treatment of diabetes; Morinidazole (Mailingda^®, 迈灵达^®), a third-generation nitroimidazole antibiotic; and tenofovir amibufenamide (Hengmu^®, 恒沐^®), the first second-generation oral anti-HBV drug developed in China. Through collaboration and partnership, NMPA has granted approval to Inebilizumab (Xinyue^®, 昕越^®), a humanized anti-CD19 monoclonal antibody, as a treatment for patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD). For more information, please visit www.hspharm.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220503005332/en/