Monte Rosa Therapeutics this week announced a global development and commercialization agreement with Novartis to advance its VAV1 molecular glue degrader (MGD)-based medicines, including MRT-6160. Monte Rosa will receive an up-front payment of $150 million and is eligible for milestone payments.
MRT-6160 is currently in an ongoing Phase I, single ascending dose (SAD)/multiple ascending dose (MAD) healthy volunteer study for immune-mediated conditions.
Novartis will obtain exclusive worldwide rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize MRT-6160 and other VAV1 MGDs and will be responsible for all clinical development and commercialization, starting with Phase II clinical studies. Monte Rosa remains responsible for completion of the ongoing Phase I clinical study of MRT-6160.
The field of molecular glue degraders is very hot right now, and has seen some major deals. These molecules can target proteins that are typically out of reach.
“We are thrilled to announce this agreement with Novartis, a key player in immune-mediated conditions, and we are excited about the transformative potential it provides for Monte Rosa and MRT-6160. We expect this will accelerate and broaden the scope of clinical development of MRT-6160 to advance this unique, orally bioavailable modality while retaining substantial value for Monte Rosa.”
“We believe the transaction validates our unique and industry leading QuEEN™ discovery engine, and it further increases our conviction to rationally design and develop highly selective and safe MGDs for undruggable targets, including in the areas of immunology and inflammation, metabolism, and genetic diseases,” said Markus Warmuth, MD, CEO of Monte Rosa Therapeutics.
“Novartis has had a long-standing interest in molecular glue degraders, which offer the potential to tackle challenging biological targets. We are excited about their application in immunology and the early progress we have seen by Monte Rosa in this space and with MRT-6160.”
“MRT-6160 is currently in an ongoing Phase I, to provide a new therapeutic option for people living with a range of immune-mediated conditions,” said Fiona Marshall, president of biomedical research at Novartis.
MRT-6160 is described by Monte Rosa as “a potent, highly selective, and orally bioavailable investigational degrader of VAV1, a key signaling protein downstream of both the T- and B-cell receptors.” Further, the company says,”Preclinical studies have demonstrated deep degradation of VAV1, resulting in a significant decrease in cytokines linked to immune-mediated conditions, with no detectable effects on other proteins. MRT-6160 has shown promising activity in preclinical models of multiple immune-mediated conditions.”
Under the terms of the agreement, besides the $150 million up front, Monte Rosa is eligible to receive up to $2.1 billion in development, regulatory, and sales milestones, beginning upon initiation of Phase II studies, as well as tiered royalties on ex-U.S. net sales. Monte Rosa will co-fund any Phase III clinical development and will share any profits and losses associated with the manufacturing and commercialization of MRT-6160 in the U.S.
