
Lilly partners with Sitryx in $880m immunometabolism drug development deal
pharmafile | April 1, 2020 | News story | Research and Development | Eli Lilly, Sitryx, partnership, pharma
Eli Lilly and UK firm Sitryx have partnered up in a new drug development and commercialisation deal that could potentially be worth $880 million, it has been revealed.
The five-year deal gives Lilly the exclusive global rights to develop and market up to four of Sitryx’s preclinical compounds – including its two lead products – for the treatment of autoimmune diseases.
Within the partnership, Sitryx will handle drug discovery duties, while Lilly will fund and manage the developmental and commercial end of the partnership. To this end, Lilly will pay Sitryx $50 million up front, plus make a $10 million equity investment in the company. From there, Sitryx is eligible to receive up to $820 million in milestone payments, plus payments payable in royalties or on delivery of commercialisation targets “in the mid- to high-single digits”
Neil Weir, Chief Executive Officer of Sitryx, said his company was “excited to partner with Lilly, one of the global leaders in the field of immunology”, while Ajay Nirula, Lilly’s Vice President of immunology, commented: “As Lilly seeks to develop new and unique medicines for people suffering with autoimmune diseases, we are actively exploring a variety of scientific approaches both in our own labs and with external partners. Regulating the metabolism of immune cells is a promising approach to treating these diseases, and we look forward to working with the talented researchers at Sitryx to advance their novel immunometabolism targets.”
The deal will go ahead subject to customary closing conditions, the companies said.
Matt Fellows
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