Epitopea’s deal with Genevant Sciences is worth $123.5m per product
The new collaboration and nonexclusive license agreement between Epitopea and Genevant Sciences will see the Cambridge company pay up to $123.5million in upfront and contingent milestone payments per product to the Canadian drug delivery specialist.
A cancer immunotherapeutics company based at Salisbury House on Station Road, Epitopea has been developing accessible off-the-shelf RNA-based immunotherapies since its formation in 2021. Its sister company is based in Montreal – founders Claude Perreault and Pierre Thibault are Université de Montréal scientists.
Epitopea treats hard-to-treat cancers by targeting a new class of untapped tumour-specific antigens known as Cryptigen TSAs, which are broadly shared across multiple patients with the same tumour type.
Epitopea has created an extensive library of novel Cryptigen TSAs, discovered by its proprietary CryptoMap platform that leverages immunopeptidomics, genomics, and a bioinformatics pipeline, allowing the identification of aberrantly expressed, tumour-specific antigens (aeTSAs) that are hidden within cancer’s ‘junk’ DNA. These hidden Cryptigen TSAs were first discovered through research led by Drs Perreault and Thibault at the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer at the Université de Montréal.
Meanwhile, Genevant Sciences is a leading nucleic acid delivery company with world-class platforms, a robust and expansive lipid nanoparticle (LNP) patent portfolio, and decades of experience and expertise in nucleic acid drug delivery and development. Based in Vancouver, Genevant’s LNP platform, which has been studied across more than a dozen discrete product candidates and is the delivery technology behind the first and only approved systemic RNA-LNP product (patisiran), enables a wide array of RNA-based applications, including vaccines, therapeutic protein production, and gene editing.
“Our clinically validated LNP technology and decades of experience in the space make us a partner of choice for innovative RNA-based immunotherapy companies,” said James Heyes, chief scientific officer of Genevant Sciences. “We are delighted to be collaborating with the Epitopea team and supporting its mission to extend the durability of clinical response in cancer patients.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Genevant granted to Epitopea a nonexclusive worldwide license to certain Genevant LNP technology to develop RNA-based immunotherapies targeting Epitopea’s Cryptigen TSAs in an undisclosed oncology indication. Genevant is eligible to receive up to $123.5m in upfront and contingent milestone payments per product and tiered royalties ranging from the mid to high single digits on future product sales.
“At Epitopea we continue to accelerate our near-term clinical development plans for our next-generation, tumour selective, off-the-shelf, RNA-based immunotherapies that we believe have the potential to extend the durability of clinical responses in patients,” said Alan Rigby, chief executive officer of Epitopea. “Access to world-class LNP delivery technology in support of our vision is critical. Genevant is a longstanding leader in the LNP space, and we are excited about the translational path forward.”
Epitopea has received support from a number of leading life sciences investors including Advent Life Sciences, CTI Life Sciences, Cambridge Innovation Capital, Le Fonds de Solidarité FTQ, Jonathan Milner, the Harrington Discovery Institute and Novateur Ventures.
