Trillium Therapeutics Inc. (TTI), a Canadian biopharmaceutical company, has acquired all assets belonging to Arthron Ltd. Pty. (Arthron), a subsidiary of Prima Biomed Ltd. (Prima). Prima, a publicly traded Australian biotechnology company, develops technologies in the fields of immunology and cancer immunotherapy originating from the Austin Research Institute, in Melbourne, Australia.
Arthron controls a large estate of intellectual property related to the activating receptor FcyRIIa, pioneered by Professor Mark Hogarth, currently the director of the Austin Research Institute. Arthron has demonstrated that this Fc receptor may be an important target in the treatment of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, and that inhibition of this receptor can alleviate symptoms in several disease models, informs a company release.
In return for all of Arthron's assets, Prima will receive an upfront cash payment and TTI common shares representing approximately 5.6% of TTI's outstanding share capital. Prima is eligible to receive additional TTI shares if certain business development and clinical milestones are met.
Dr. Niclas Stiernholm, TTI's CEO said that this transaction would not only add three new top level research programmes to TTI's pipeline, but also provide excellent opportunities to build new development partnerships, and allow the company to retain and advance several programmes internally.
The Arthron programmes comprise therapeutic approaches employing both small molecules and biologics in the treatment of immune-mediated disorders. In an effort to maximise shareholder value, TTI will advance some of the programmes internally while forming partnerships to advance others.
Dr. Bob Uger, TTI's vice president R&D, stated, "The Arthron acquisition complements our existing research activities and provides us with an opportunity to leverage our immunology expertise to get actively involved in the B cell side of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Working in an industry driven by innovation, this value-added research partner in the Austin Research Institute, one of Australia's premier medical research institutes, will enable us to continue to create new and valuable intellectual property."
Trillium Therapeutics Inc. is a private research and development company specialising in innovative therapies that restore balance to the immune system in conditions associated with aberrant and harmful immune responses.