Numab Therapeutics and Boehringer Ingelheim Enter into Collaboration to Develop Multi-specific Antibody Therapeutics for Cancer and Retinal Diseases

Ingelheim, Germany and Waedenswil, Switzerland, 7 July, 2020 – Boehringer Ingelheim and Numab Therapeutics (Numab) today announced that they have entered into a research collaboration and worldwide licensing agreement. It will start with two projects aiming at novel therapies for difficult-to-treat lung and gastrointestinal (GI) cancers and patients with geographic atrophy (GA), a progressive, irreversible retinal disease that occurs in patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) for which there is no current treatment. The collaboration brings together Boehringer Ingelheim’s leading expertise in the research and development of life changing breakthrough therapies with Numab’s multi-specific antibody platform.

Lung and GI cancers and retinal diseases are key focus areas of Boehringer Ingelheim’s research and development program. In oncology the company has built a broad and diverse pipeline, combining cancer immunology and cancer cell directed approaches. The novel T-cell engager to be developed with Numab adds to Boehringer Ingelheim’s growing cancer immunology portfolio and supports the strategy to take cancer on by targeting ‘cold’ tumors with synergistic combination approaches. In retinal diseases Boehringer Ingelheim is pursuing a holistic approach leveraging existing expertise in oncology, inflammation, neurodegeneration, fibrosis and cardiometabolic diseases. The new GA program with Numab further broadens the company’s comprehensive portfolio of next generation retinal therapy approaches in various stages of development up to Phase 2 in macular degeneration and diabetic retinal diseases.

“We are thrilled to work with the excellent team at Numab to advance our portfolio assets. Numab’s technology platform fits well with our internal antibody discovery and engineering capabilities and will enhance our efforts to deliver transformative antibody-based therapeutics to patients,” said Paige Mahaney, Discovery Research Site Head, US & Global Head of Biotherapeutics Discovery Research.

“We are looking forward to working with Boehringer Ingelheim, a global leader in pharmaceutical R&D with profound expertise across a broad spectrum of therapeutic areas, further validating our technology platform. This addition to our growing roster of partnerships represents another key milestone in our business development efforts,” commented Dr. Oliver Middendorp, Chief Business Officer of Numab Therapeutics. “The upfront payment and near-term milestones attached to this alliance will further strengthen Numab’s ability to accelerate the development of key proprietary assets.”

Under the terms of the alliance, the partners will work together to discover one novel multi-specific antibody drug candidate in each area. Boehringer Ingelheim receives from Numab an exclusive worldwide license to develop and commercialize the resulting candidates in exchange for upfront and milestone payments, as well as tiered royalties on net sales of all products resulting from the alliance.

With today’s announcement, Numab has been able to secure seven ongoing relationships with leading pharmaceutical companies including 3SBio / Sunshine Guojian, Boehringer Ingelheim, Eisai Co., Ltd., CStone Pharmaceuticals, Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Kaken Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., and Tillotts Pharma AG.

About Boehringer Ingelheim

Making new and better medicines for humans and animals is at the heart of what we do. Our mission is to create breakthrough therapies that change lives. Since its founding in 1885, Boehringer Ingelheim is independent and family-owned. We have the freedom to pursue our long-term vision, looking ahead to identify the health challenges of the future and targeting those areas of need where we can do the most good.

As a world-leading, research-driven pharmaceutical company, more than 51,000 employees create value through innovation daily for our three business areas: Human Pharma, Animal Health, and Biopharmaceutical Contract Manufacturing. In 2019, Boehringer Ingelheim achieved net sales of 19 billion euros. Our significant investment of almost 3.5 billion euros in R&D drives innovation, enabling the next generation of medicines that save lives and improve quality of life.

We realize more scientific opportunities by embracing the power of partnership and diversity of experts across the life-science community. By working together, we accelerate the delivery of the next medical breakthrough that will transform the lives of patients now, and in generations to come.

More information about Boehringer Ingelheim can be found at www.boehringer-ingelheim.com or in our annual report http://annualreport.boehringer-ingelheim.com.

About Numab Therapeutics

Numab Therapeutics is an oncology-focused biopharmaceutical company based in Zurich-area, Switzerland. At Numab, we are writing the next chapter in cancer immunotherapy by creating multi-specific antibodies that enable the pursuit of novel therapeutic strategies. With our proprietary MATCH™ technology platform, we are fueling a new wave of multi-specific drug candidates engineered with versatility and developability in mind. Our lead product was designed to balance potent anti-tumor immunity with a desirable safety profile by targeting 4-1BB, PD-L1 and Human Serum Albumin simultaneously. We believe meeting the highest quality standards in every step of the drug design process matters and will result in better patient outcomes. For further information, visit www.numab.com.

Numab Therapeutics Contacts:
David Urech
Chief Executive Officer
d.urech@numab.com 

For media
MacDougall
Sara Michelmore or Caroline Rufo, PhD.
+1 781-235-3060
numab@macbiocom.com