Ablynx receives second nanobody payment from Novartis
Ablynx has received an undisclosed milestone payment from Novartis for an exclusive research licence in one of the programmes that is a component of their ongoing research and development alliance.
Ablynx has received an undisclosed milestone payment from Novartis for an exclusive research licence in one of the programmes that is a component of their ongoing research and development alliance.
The Belgian company is working with Swiss drugmaker Novartis on the development of therapeutic nanobodies against targets that are difficult to address with conventional antibodies and their fragments.
The alliance was entered into in December 2005, and extended in 2007 and again in December 2008 for a further year. Under the terms of the agreement, Ablynx receives upfront fees, licence fees and funding for r&d. In addition, Ablynx will be eligible for milestone payments and royalties upon commercialisation.
"We are delighted that a second nanobody programme from our collaboration with Novartis is advancing to the next stage and we look forward to seeing these two programmes progressing towards development," said Edwin Moses, chief executive of Ablynx.