Novo Nordisk, Ventus Enter Licensing Deal with Potential Value of $700M

Novo Nordisk entered a licensing agreement with Ventus Therapeutics to develop and commercialize peripherally-restricted NLRP3 inhibitors.
 
Novo Nordisk will combine its expertise in cardiometabolic diseases with Ventus’ lead NLRP3 inhibitor program VENT-01 to target a broad range of diseases, including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and chronic kidney disease. VENT-01 is expected to enter trials next year.
 
Under terms of the agreement, Novo Nordisk pay Ventus $70 million upfront and Ventus is eligible to receive as much as an additional $633 million in potential clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestones, as well as royalties.
 
Ventus retains the right to develop NLRP3 inhibitors for certain systemic diseases, including specific inflammatory and respiratory diseases. Ventus also retains rights for its distinct brain-penetrant NLRP3 inhibitor program, VENT-02, which is expected to enter the trials in 2023 with an initial focus on epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease.
 
“The collaboration validates the company’s structural biology capabilities that enable the discovery and development of “highly differentiated molecules with novel chemical structures,” Marcelo Bigal, president and chief executive officer of Ventus, told BioSpace Thursday morning. 
 
Ventus has a third candidate that targets cGAS, a key regulator of the cGAS/stimulator of interferon genes (STING) pathway, and an undisclosed fourth candidate, both assets are expected to enter in-human testing in 2024.
 
NLRP3 (NLR pyrin domain-containing 3) is a key mediator of proinflammatory cytokines IL-1b and IL-18. It’s targeted in diseases where inflammation is the critical driver of pathology. Activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome in the body is implicated in many diseases caused by chronic, uncontrolled inflammation. An overactive NLRP3 inflammasome is associated with systemic conditions, including fibrotic, dermatological and rheumatological diseases and plays a role in neurological disorders.