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Novartis, Aduro Biotech partner to accelerate cancer immunotherapy efforts

Swiss pharmaceutical firm Novartis has entered into a major multiyear collaboration with US-based Aduro Biotech in order to accelerate its cancer immunotherapy efforts.

Aduro is focused on the discovery and development of next generation cancer immunotherapies targeting the Stimulator of Interferon Genes (STING) pathway.

The Swiss firm has also launched a new immuno-oncology research group led by renowned cancer vaccine expert Glenn Dranoff.

Under the deal, the parties will research, develop and commercialize new immuno-oncology products derived from Aduro’s cyclic dinucleotide (CDN) approach to target the STING receptor.

When activated, the STING receptor is known to start broad innate and adaptive tumor-specific immune responses.

As part of the deal, Novartis will make an upfront payment of $200m to Aduro and, if all development milestones are met, the latter is eligible to receive up to an additional aggregate amount of $500m.

Additionally, Novartis has made an initial 2.7% equity investment in Aduro for $25m, with a commitment for another $25m investment at a future date.

The deal will see Aduro lead commercialization activities and book sales in the US, with Novartis leading commercialization and recognizing sales in the rest of the world.

Both the firms will share in profits, if any, in the US, Japan and major European countries, while Novartis will pay Aduro a royalty for sales in the rest of the world.

The addition of STING agonists strengthens Novartis’ diverse portfolio of immunotherapies that includes chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CART) technology and novel checkpoint inhibitors.

Currently the CART program, CTL019, is in Phase II trials and checkpoint inhibitors targeting PD1, LAG3, and TIM3 are expected to enter the clinic in mid-2015.

Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research president Mark Fishman said: "Immunotherapy is one of the exciting frontiers in oncology today. Current approaches with checkpoint inhibitors and T-cell modulation are potent but only in select tumor types.

"STING agonists have the potential to fully activate the immune system to attack a broader range of tumors.

"Under Glenn Dranoff’s leadership our new immuno-oncology research group will aggressively drive our current programs to the clinic and explore new directions for both mono and combination therapies."