NeuroVive and Arbutus Sign Termination Agreement

NeuroVive Pharmaceutical AB (Nasdaq Stockholm: NVP, OTCQX: NEVPF), the mitochondrial medicine company, today announces that the license agreement with Arbutus Biopharma (formerly OnCore Biopharma, Inc.) has been terminated and all rights to the NVP018 compound have been reverted back to NeuroVive. The agreement, signed in 2014, was related to the development and commercialization of NeuroVive’s compound NVP018 for oral treatment of Hepatitis B viral infection.
In its portfolio of several Hepatitis B compounds, Arbutus has
previously made the decision to proceed with other compounds and to
discontinue the development of NVP018 for this indication. As a
consequence, the agreement between Arbutus and NeuroVive has now been
terminated.
Under the termination agreement, NeuroVive will at no cost receive
NVP018 drug product and material produced by Arbutus Biopharma,
representing a value of approximately 1.5 MUSD. Data from preclinical
and CMC development have been transferred. Furthermore, all license
rights to the NVP018 compound have been reverted to NeuroVive for
further development in any potential indication.
“We have appreciated the interactions with Arbutus and there are a
number of valuable learnings that have come out of the preclinical
development activities. As we see several very exciting potential
treatments with NVP018 in areas with unmet medical need, the R&D team is
currently exploring various options for further development of these
opportunities. The material provided by Arbutus will be most useful in
these activities”, said Erik Kinnman, CEO of NeuroVive.
About NVP018
NVP018 is a potent non-immunosuppressive cyclophilin inhibitor of the
novel compound class Sangamides. NVP018 is the oral version of
NeuroVive’s lead compound from its cyclophilin platform and has
undergone extensive preclinical development and evaluation in various
efficacy models. The drug candidate NVP018 was licensed to a third party
in September 2014, Arbutus Biopharma (formerly OnCore Biopharma) for
oral treatment of Hepatitis B.
About NeuroVive
NeuroVive Pharmaceutical AB (STO:NVP) is a leader in mitochondrial
medicine. The company is committed to the discovery and development of
medicines that preserve mitochondrial integrity and function in areas of
unmet medical need. NeuroVive enhances the value of its projects in an
organization that includes strong international partnerships and a
network of mitochondrial research institutions, drug development and
production expertise, as well as commercial partners.
NeuroVive has a project in clinical phase II development for the
prevention of moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (NeuroSTAT®).
NeuroSTAT has orphan drug designation in Europe and in the US. The R&D
portfolio consists of several late stage research programs in areas
ranging from genetic mitochondrial disorders to neurological and
metabolic diseases.
NeuroVive is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, Sweden (ticker: NVP). The share
is also traded on the OTCQX Best Market in the US (OTC: NEVPF).
NeuroVive Pharmaceutical AB (publ)
Medicon Village, SE-223 81 Lund, Sweden
Tel: +46 (0)46 275 62 20 (switchboard)
www.neurovive.com
This information is information that NeuroVive Pharmaceutical AB (publ)
is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation.
The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the
contact person set out above, at 08:30 a.m. CEST on October 21, 2016.
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