Five Prime Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq:FPRX) and Bristol-Myers
Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) announced today that they have signed a
collaboration agreement for the discovery, development and
commercialization of immuno-oncology therapies directed toward targets
identified in two undisclosed immune checkpoint pathways using Five
Prime’s proprietary target discovery platform.
Bristol-Myers Squibb will leverage Five Prime’s platform to advance its
existing immuno-oncology programs by identifying the most viable drug
targets for continued research and development. Drug candidates
developed against these new and existing targets may be studied either
as single agents or in combination with existing or potential
Bristol-Myers Squibb immuno-oncology therapies.
“Immuno-oncology has the potential to be transformational in the
treatment of cancer, and Bristol-Myers Squibb has an extensive clinical
pipeline and discovery programs dedicated to maximizing this field of
research,” said Francis
Cuss, MB BChir, FRCP, executive vice president and chief scientific
officer, Bristol-Myers Squibb. “Five Prime’s innovative technology
platforms complement our immuno-oncology pipeline and will help expand
our understanding of promising new therapeutic options for patients.”
“We are thrilled to enter this important collaboration with
Bristol-Myers Squibb, an undisputed leader in the exciting field of
immuno-oncology,” said Lewis T. "Rusty" Williams, M.D., Ph.D., President
and Chief Executive Officer of Five Prime. “This strategic alliance is
evidence that our protein discovery platform is ideally suited to
identify novel immune checkpoint targets for the development of next
generation immuno-oncology therapeutics.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Bristol-Myers Squibb will obtain
exclusive, worldwide rights to develop and commercialize products
directed toward certain protein targets identified by Five Prime prior
to and during the collaboration. Bristol-Myers Squibb will make an
upfront payment of $20 million to Five Prime and provide up to $9.5
million in research funding over the course of the research term.
Additionally, Bristol-Myers Squibb will make a payment of approximately
$21 million to acquire 4.9% of Five Prime’s outstanding common stock
purchased at approximately a 30% premium. Five Prime will be eligible to
receive up to $300 million in future development, regulatory and sales
based milestone payments per collaboration target and tiered
mid-single-digit rising to low-double-digit royalty payments on net
sales of each product commercialized by Bristol-Myers Squibb.
About Bristol-Myers Squibb
Bristol-Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission
is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help
patients prevail over serious diseases. For more information, please
visit www.bms.com
or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/bmsnews.
About Five Prime Therapeutics
Five Prime Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company
focused on discovering and developing novel protein therapeutics for
cancer and inflammatory diseases. Five Prime has leveraged its
comprehensive library of human extracellular proteins and its
proprietary high-throughput screening technologies to produce new
targets for protein therapeutics to be advanced by partners or in the
company's internal pipeline. Five Prime currently has 2 therapeutics in
clinical testing and a third anticipated to enter the clinic by the end
of 2014. FP-1039 (GSK3052230) is a fibroblast growth factor (FGF) ligand
trap being developed in collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline to treat
multiple solid tumors. A global, multi-arm Phase 1b study of FP-1039 in
combination with standard chemotherapy in FGFR1 gene-amplified squamous
non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and mesothelioma is underway. A
second drug candidate is FPA008, a monoclonal antibody that inhibits
colony stimulating factor-1 receptor (CSF1R) activation and is being
developed to treat rheumatoid arthritis, is in a Phase 1 trial currently
enrolling. FPA144 is a monoclonal antibody that blocks signaling through
fibroblast growth factor receptor 2b (FGFR2b) and is glyco-engineered
for enhanced antibody-dependent cytotoxicity. FPA144 is expected to
begin a Phase 1 study in gastric cancer by the end of 2014.
For more information please see: www.fiveprime.com
Bristol-Myers Squibb Forward-Looking Statement
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as that term is
defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
regarding the research, development and commercialization of
pharmaceutical products. Such forward-looking statements are based on
current expectations and involve inherent risks and uncertainties,
including factors that could delay, divert or change any of them, and
could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from
current expectations. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed.
Among other risks, there can be no guarantee that this collaboration
will lead to the discovery of new drug candidates, that clinical trials
from this collaboration will support regulatory filings, or that any new
drug candidates will receive regulatory approvals or, if approved, that
they will become commercially successful products. Forward-looking
statements in this press release should be evaluated together with the
many uncertainties that affect Bristol-Myers Squibb's business,
particularly those identified in the cautionary factors discussion in
Bristol-Myers Squibb's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2013, in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and our Current
Reports on Form 8-K. Bristol-Myers Squibb undertakes no obligation to
publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of
new information, future events or otherwise.
Five Prime Forward-Looking Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words
such as "may," "will," "expect," "plan," "anticipate," "estimate,"
"intend" and similar expressions (as well as other words or expressions
referencing future events, conditions or circumstances) are intended to
identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements
are based on Five Prime's expectations and assumptions as of the date of
this press release. Each of these forward-looking statements involves
risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from these
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements contained in this
press release include statements regarding the (i) advancement of
immuno-oncology programs; (ii) development and commercialization of
products; and (iii) Five Prime’s receipt of milestone payments and
royalty payments. Factors that may cause actual results to differ from
those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements in this
press release are discussed in Five Prime's filings with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission, including the "Risk Factors"
contained therein. Except as required by law, Five Prime assumes no
obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained herein to
reflect any change in expectations, even as new information becomes
available.