GSK to acquire exclusive rights to Janssen’s hepatitis B therapy in $1bn deal

01 Nov 2023
www.pmlive.com
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GSK to acquire exclusive rights to Janssen’s hepatitis B therapy in $1bn deal
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Source: PMLiVE
GSK and Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals have announced that they have reached an agreement with Janssen Pharmaceuticals to receive exclusive rights to its hepatitis B therapy, JNJ-3989.
The Johnson & Johnson company’s investigational hepatitis B virus (HBV)-targeted small interfering ribonucleic acid (siRNA) therapeutic was initially licensed by Janssen from Arrowhead in 2018.
Exclusive rights to the liver-targeted siRNA antiviral therapy will accelerate the expansion of GSK’s own hepatitis B treatment, bepirovirsen, which is currently in late-stage development, the company said.
Under the terms of the deal, GSK will pay upfront and potential milestone-based payments totalling $1bn to Janssen and Arrowhead to acquire exclusive rights and obligations under the current license agreement between both companies.
Janssen will continue to be responsible for the ongoing clinical trials of JNJ-3989 at its own expense and GSK will be responsible for future development and commercialisation activities.
Additionally, tiered royalties on net dates pursuant to the original agreement will go to Arrowhead.
GSK intends to evaluate JNJ-3989 in combination with its investigational antisense oligonucleotide, bepirovirsen, for the treatment of adult non-cirrhotic patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) on nucleos(t)ide analogue (NA) therapy.
JNJ-3839 has the potential to move into a phase 2 sequential regimen trial with GSK’s bepirovirsen in 2024.
Hepatitis B is a viral infection of the liver, caused by HBV, that can result in both acute and chronic liver disease.
Estimated to affect 300 million people worldwide, CHB is a long-lasting infection and occurs when the body’s immune system is unable to fight off the virus and it persists in the blood and liver.
Tony Wood, chief scientific officer at GSK, said: "[The company is] excited to build on promising results already demonstrated with bepirovirsen to investigate a novel sequential regimen with JNJ-3989.
“We believe this approach could redefine the treatment paradigm for CHB by helping even more patients achieve functional cure."
Arrowhead’s president and chief executive officer, Chris Anzalone, commented: “We… look forward to seeing this programme progress towards the goal of potentially helping the millions of patients with CHB worldwide without adequate treatment options.”
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