Five Prime, Inhibrx Enter Strategic Research Pact

Five Prime Therapeutics, Inc. has entered a strategic research collaboration and license agreement with Inhibrx for Inhibrx’s glucocorticoid-induced tumor necrosis factor receptor (GITR) antibody program, currently at lead selection stage.
 
Five Prime identified GITR as a potent inhibitor of tumor growth using its protein library and in vivo screening technologies. GITR is an immune checkpoint protein believed to activate an immune response against tumor cells. In preclinical studies, agonist antibodies have demonstrated the ability to induce tumor regressions, particularly when administered in combination with other immuno-oncology therapies.
 
Five Prime will pay Inhibrx a $10 million license fee in return for exclusive, worldwide therapeutic and diagnostic rights to antibodies provided by Inhibrx that bind to GITR, as well as an option to license multi-specific antibodies that bind to GITR and other targets. Inhibrx is eligible to receive as much as $342.5 million in development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments per therapeutic product, or as much as $442.5 million in development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments, as well as royalties on future product sales.
 
“Five Prime is actively pursuing a comprehensive approach to immuno-oncology by identifying pipeline candidates with the potential to work independently or in combination to target macrophages, immune check points, T cell agonist pathways and Treg cells. Comparing across many potential targets, our platform pointed to GITR as an ideal agonist to expand our portfolio,” said Lewis “Rusty” T. Williams, M.D., Ph.D., chief executive officer and president of Five Prime.
 
“Inhibrx’s antibody technology is uniquely suited to activate GITR and enhance the immune response against the tumor. We believe this program has the potential to create a differentiated, next-generation GITR agonist that may have broad therapeutic application as a monotherapy or in combination with approved checkpoint inhibitors or other therapies, including products in our pipeline.”
 
“We believe Five Prime’s insights into GITR biology and their scientific and clinical translation capabilities make them the optimal partner for our GITR program,” said Mark Lappe, chief executive officer of Inhibrx. “They share our commitment to bring therapeutics to patients in need as quickly as possible and we are excited to be collaborating with them.”