Global Licensing of FL3+Aurora Programme

RNS Number : 6316H

Sareum Holdings PLC

26 March 2020

 

(AIM: SAR)

26 March 2020

Sareum Holdings plc

("Sareum" or the "Company")

Sareum Signs Global Licensing Deal for its FLT3+Aurora Kinase Inhibitor Programme with a China-based Specialty Pharma Company

Sareum Holdings plc (AIM: SAR), the specialist cancer drug discovery and development business, is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement (the "Agreement") with a China-based specialty pharmaceutical company (the "Licensee).

Under the terms of the Agreement, the Licensee has been granted an exclusive worldwide licence to develop, manufacture and commercialise certain small molecule inhibitors of FLT3+Aurora kinases including Sareum's lead candidate SAR-20293 (together the "Compounds"), which has shown potential in preclinical models of acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) and other leukaemias.

The Licensee is principally engaged in research and development, production and sales of innovative drugs, including oncology drugs, in China and is listed on the main market of the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

Under the terms of the Agreement, the Licensee will fund all future development activities in relation to the Compounds and has been granted sole rights to market any resulting products worldwide.

Sareum will receive an initial upfront payment of approximately £50,000.  A further payment of approximately £0.9 million will be payable to Sareum if certain milestones related to the oral bioavailability of the Compounds are achieved within nine months from the date of the Agreement (the "Development Payment").  

Sareum will assign certain patents in respect of the Compounds to the Licensee upon receipt of the Development Payment.  The Agreement may be terminated with immediate effect if Sareum does not receive the Development Payment within nine months of the date of the Agreement.

Sareum will also be entitled to receive a future milestone payment in the event that an Investigational New Drug or equivalent application is made in China or any other country.

Under the Agreement, Sareum is also eligible to receive certain revenues from the commercialisation of the products by the Licensee outside of China. In addition, Sareum would be eligible to receive commercialisation revenues relating to their commercialisation should the Licensee execute an on-licence of the Compounds and resulting products to a third party.

Since all research and development expenditure is written off as it occurs, in line with standard industry practise, the Compounds covered by the Agreement are held at nil value on Sareum's balance sheet.

Sareum was advised and assisted on this agreement by Cambridge (UK)-based technology brokerage Link China Pharma Solutions.

Sareum's CEO, Dr Tim Mitchell, commented: "We are delighted with this important global licensing deal for our FLT3+Aurora inhibitor programme, which could generate significant milestone revenue in the next nine months. We believe the Licensee has the resources and expertise to further advance these molecules through the clinic to commercialisation in China.

"With this programme now partnered, we are wholly focused on advancing the development of our proprietary TYK2/JAK1 inhibitors through preclinical studies and look forward to providing updates as material milestones are reached."

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation 596/2014

For further information, please contact: 

Sareum Holdings plc

Tim Mitchell, CEO    01223 497 700

Strand Hanson Limited (Nominated Adviser)

James Dance / Richard Tulloch                                       020 7409 3494

Hybridan LLP (Nominated Broker)

Claire Noyce / John Beresford-Peirse                            020 3764 2341

Citigate Dewe Rogerson (Financial PR)

Mark Swallow/ David Dible                                             020 7638 9571

About Sareum

Sareum is a specialist drug development company delivering targeted small molecule therapeutics to improve the treatment of cancer and autoimmune disease. The Company aims to generate value through licensing its candidates to international pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies at the preclinical or early clinical trials stage.

Sareum is advancing internal programmes focused on distinct dual tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2) / Janus kinase 1 (JAK1) inhibitors through preclinical development as therapies for autoimmune diseases (SDC-1801) and cancers (SDC-1802). The Company is targeting completion of preclinical development for each molecule in 2020.

The Company's preclinical FLT3+Aurora inhibitor programme targeting haematological cancers is licensed to a China-based specialty pharma company.

Sareum also has an economic interest in SRA737, a clinical-stage oral, selective Checkpoint kinase 1 (Chk1) inhibitor that targets cancer cell replication and DNA damage repair mechanisms. Preliminary data suggest SRA737 may have broad application in combination with other oncology and immune-oncology drugs in genetically defined patients.

SRA737 was discovered and initially developed by scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research in collaboration with Sareum, and with funding from Sareum and Cancer Research UK. SRA737 was licensed by CRT Pioneer Fund (CPF) to Sierra Oncology Inc., which is currently seeking to on-license SRA737 to a third party for further development.

Sareum Holdings plc is listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange, trading under the ticker SAR. For further information, please visit the Company's website at www.sareum.co.uk.

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