F-star and Takeda Collaborate to Pave the Way for Next-Generation Cancer Therapies
In an exciting development for the field of cancer immunotherapy, F-star Therapeutics, an invoX company, has recently announced a strategic collaboration and licence agreement with Takeda. The partnership aims to leverage F-star's advanced proprietary platforms to discover and develop next-generation multi-specific antibodies for cancer patients.
F-star's innovative platforms, namely the fully-human Fcab™ and tetravalent mAb²™, have shown great promise in the field of immunotherapy. By joining forces with Takeda, the two companies seek to accelerate research and development in the realm of multi-specific immunotherapies. These therapies hold the potential to revolutionise cancer treatment and extend the lives of patients, offering a new ray of hope in the battle against this devastating disease.
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Under the terms of the agreement, F-star and Takeda will collaborate on researching and developing novel Fcab domains targeting undisclosed immuno-oncology targets. Takeda will gain exclusive worldwide rights to commercialise antibodies incorporating Fcab domains arising from this partnership, while F-star retains the rights to work on antibodies incorporating certain other Fcab domains.
The collaboration not only brings together the scientific expertise and resources of both companies but also serves as a testament to the success of their prior agreements. Over the past year, F-star and Takeda have worked on developing novel bispecific antibodies, demonstrating the strength of F-star's Fcab™ discovery platform and Takeda's deep understanding of the immune system. The extension of their collaboration into multi-specific antibodies further cements their commitment to advancing the field of immunotherapy.
In addition to undisclosed upfront payments and research funding during the collaboration, F-star stands to receive potential milestone payments of up to approximately $1 billion, contingent on the successful achievement of development and commercialization milestones across multiple programs. The deal also includes royalties on potential annual net sales of any commercial product resulting from the licence, offering F-star a significant incentive to drive innovation and therapeutic breakthroughs.
Neil Brewis, Head of F-star Therapeutics and Chief Scientific Officer, expressed his excitement about expanding the collaboration with Takeda, highlighting their shared vision of developing groundbreaking immunotherapies that can improve the lives of cancer patients. By combining F-star's clinically validated platforms with Takeda's prowess in drug development, the companies aim to propel the field of cancer immunotherapy to new heights, ultimately leading to more effective and accessible treatments for those in need.
Speaking in a press release, Kathy Seidl, Head of the Oncology Drug Discovery Unit at Takeda, was keen to emphasise the role of F-star's proprietary Fcab™ discovery platform in enabling unique tetravalent mAb² bispecific programs. She also emphasised the potential of the collaboration's research program to produce novel multi-specific antibodies, harnessing the innate immune system and engaging immune cells to target cancer cells effectively.
This collaboration and licence agreement mark the third partnership between F-star and Takeda. The previous licence agreements for immune-oncology bispecific antibodies in 2022 and 2023 laid the foundation for their ongoing collaboration, which continues to bear fruit in the form of cutting-edge cancer therapies. Takeda's dedication to developing these licensed antibodies outside the scope of the new partnership further illustrates their commitment to advancing the frontiers of cancer treatment.
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