MorphoSys AG (Frankfurt: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) announced today that it has signed a five-year license agreement with U.S. pharmaceutical company Merck & Co., Inc. for the use of MorphoSys’s HuCAL GOLD® and AutoCAL™ technologies in research and development of human therapeutic antibodies.
Under the terms of the agreement, MorphoSys grants Merck access to its proprietary technologies for use in Merck’s drug discovery programs. Furthermore, the agreement enables Merck to develop HuCAL®-derived therapeutic antibodies in a range of indications. MorphoSys receives an up-front payment, annual user fees and R&D funding. MorphoSys is also eligible to receive license and milestone payments on projects in clinical development, and royalties on any end-products emerging from the collaboration. Further financial details were not disclosed.
During the term of the agreement, Merck will have access to the MorphoSys HuCAL GOLD® antibody library and automated screening system AutoCAL™ at its research sites. Merck also has access to MorphoSys’s HuCAL® EST technology, which enables the rapid generation of human antibodies against newly identified proteins and an option to pursue up to ten HuCAL®-based therapeutic antibody programs.
”We expect our agreement with MorphoSys to play a key role in building Merck’s capabilities for developing novel therapeutics in the biologics area” said Dr. John Shiver, Vice President and Head of Merck Vaccines and Biologics Research.
“We are excited to embark upon this technology-based collaboration with a top tier pharma company”, commented Dr. Simon Moroney, Chief Executive Officer of MorphoSys. “Our latest collaboration with Merck underscores the value and importance of our technology platform and its potential in pharmaceutical R&D as well as our ability to forge long-term partnerships based on our capabilities in the antibody arena.”
About MorphoSys:
MorphoSys develops and applies innovative technologies for the production of synthetic antibodies, which accelerate drug discovery and target characterization. Founded in 1992, the Company’s proprietary Human Combinatorial Antibody Library (HuCAL®) technology is used by researchers worldwide for human antibody generation. The Company currently has licensing agreements and/or research collaborations with Bayer (Berkeley, California/USA), Boehringer Ingelheim (Ingelheim, Germany), Bristol-Myers Squibb (New Jersey/USA), Centocor Inc. (Malvern, Pennsylvania/USA), GPC Biotech AG (Munich/Germany), Hoffmann-La Roche AG (Basel/Switzerland), ImmunoGen Inc. (Cambridge, Massachusetts/USA), Novartis AG (Basel, Switzerland), Pfizer Inc. (Delaware/USA), ProChon Biotech Ltd. (Rehovot/Israel), Schering AG (Berlin/Germany), Shionogi & Co., Ltd. (Osaka/Japan), Xoma Ltd. (Berkeley, California/USA) and others. Additionally, MorphoSys is active in the antibody research market through its Antibodies by Design business unit. Antibodies by Design was founded in 2003 for the purpose of exploiting the MorphoSys non-therapeutic antibody markets. MorphoSys’ activities in the research antibody segment were significantly strengthened through the acquisition of the U.K. and U.S.-based Biogenesis Group in January 2005.
Statements included in this press release which are not historical in nature are intended to be, and are hereby identified as, “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the safe harbour provided by Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words including “anticipates”, “believes”, “intends”, “estimates”, “expects” and similar expressions. The company cautions readers that forward-looking statements, including without limitation those relating to the company’s future operations and business prospects, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Factors that may affect future operations and business prospects include, but are not limited to, clinical and scientific results and developments concerning corporate collaborations and the company’s proprietary rights and other factors described in the prospectus relating to the company’s recent public offering.
Under the terms of the agreement, MorphoSys grants Merck access to its proprietary technologies for use in Merck’s drug discovery programs. Furthermore, the agreement enables Merck to develop HuCAL®-derived therapeutic antibodies in a range of indications. MorphoSys receives an up-front payment, annual user fees and R&D funding. MorphoSys is also eligible to receive license and milestone payments on projects in clinical development, and royalties on any end-products emerging from the collaboration. Further financial details were not disclosed.
During the term of the agreement, Merck will have access to the MorphoSys HuCAL GOLD® antibody library and automated screening system AutoCAL™ at its research sites. Merck also has access to MorphoSys’s HuCAL® EST technology, which enables the rapid generation of human antibodies against newly identified proteins and an option to pursue up to ten HuCAL®-based therapeutic antibody programs.
”We expect our agreement with MorphoSys to play a key role in building Merck’s capabilities for developing novel therapeutics in the biologics area” said Dr. John Shiver, Vice President and Head of Merck Vaccines and Biologics Research.
“We are excited to embark upon this technology-based collaboration with a top tier pharma company”, commented Dr. Simon Moroney, Chief Executive Officer of MorphoSys. “Our latest collaboration with Merck underscores the value and importance of our technology platform and its potential in pharmaceutical R&D as well as our ability to forge long-term partnerships based on our capabilities in the antibody arena.”
About MorphoSys:
MorphoSys develops and applies innovative technologies for the production of synthetic antibodies, which accelerate drug discovery and target characterization. Founded in 1992, the Company’s proprietary Human Combinatorial Antibody Library (HuCAL®) technology is used by researchers worldwide for human antibody generation. The Company currently has licensing agreements and/or research collaborations with Bayer (Berkeley, California/USA), Boehringer Ingelheim (Ingelheim, Germany), Bristol-Myers Squibb (New Jersey/USA), Centocor Inc. (Malvern, Pennsylvania/USA), GPC Biotech AG (Munich/Germany), Hoffmann-La Roche AG (Basel/Switzerland), ImmunoGen Inc. (Cambridge, Massachusetts/USA), Novartis AG (Basel, Switzerland), Pfizer Inc. (Delaware/USA), ProChon Biotech Ltd. (Rehovot/Israel), Schering AG (Berlin/Germany), Shionogi & Co., Ltd. (Osaka/Japan), Xoma Ltd. (Berkeley, California/USA) and others. Additionally, MorphoSys is active in the antibody research market through its Antibodies by Design business unit. Antibodies by Design was founded in 2003 for the purpose of exploiting the MorphoSys non-therapeutic antibody markets. MorphoSys’ activities in the research antibody segment were significantly strengthened through the acquisition of the U.K. and U.S.-based Biogenesis Group in January 2005.
Statements included in this press release which are not historical in nature are intended to be, and are hereby identified as, “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the safe harbour provided by Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words including “anticipates”, “believes”, “intends”, “estimates”, “expects” and similar expressions. The company cautions readers that forward-looking statements, including without limitation those relating to the company’s future operations and business prospects, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Factors that may affect future operations and business prospects include, but are not limited to, clinical and scientific results and developments concerning corporate collaborations and the company’s proprietary rights and other factors described in the prospectus relating to the company’s recent public offering.
For further information, please contact:
MorphoSys AG
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