Vernalis plc, a commercial stage pharmaceutical company, announced Corvus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Corvus) as its licensee for their adenosine antagonist programme.

In February 2015, Vernalis licensed exclusive, worldwide rights in its adenosine receptor antagonist programme for use in all therapeutic applications to Corvus, a US-based biotechnology company. At the time the name of the company was not disclosed and nor was the initial therapeutic focus.

Corvus was launched through a $33.5 million Series A fundraising in 2014 by the founder and former senior management at Pharmacyclics Inc. and it raised a further $75m (Series B) in September 2015.

The lead molecule, CPI-444 is a patented small molecule that has been evaluated in phase I and II clinical trials under an IND in the US. Corvus brings a wealth of clinical and commercial expertise and experience and is looking to develop CPI-444 for immuno-oncology, with clinical studies expected in 2016.

Ian Garland, CEO of Vernalis commented "We are pleased to make public that Corvus is our licensee and we are excited about the development of CPI-444 in an immuno-oncology setting."