Everest Medicines Enters into Licence Agreement with Kezar Life Sciences
Thursday, September 21, 2023
Everest has recently announced a collaboration and licence agreement with Kezar Life Sciences to develop and commercialise Kezar's lead drug candidate, zetomipzomib, in Greater China, South Korea, and select Southeast Asian countries.
Zetomipzomib is a novel and first-in-class selective inhibitor of the immunoproteasome, designed for the treatment of various autoimmune diseases, including lupus nephritis (LN).
Under the terms of the agreement, Kezar will receive an upfront payment of $7 million, with the potential for additional payments based on the achievement of clinical and commercial milestones, totalling up to $125.5 million. Additionally, Kezar will be eligible for tiered single-digit to low-teens royalties on net sales of products resulting from this collaboration.
This partnership with Kezar, strengthens Everest's position in renal pipeline and autoimmune diseases in Asia. This collaboration marks an important milestone in the development of zetomipzomib, demonstrating the drug's potential to address severe, chronic autoimmune diseases with a favourable safety and tolerability profile.
Zetomipzomib (KZR-616) is a groundbreaking and innovative immunoproteasome inhibitor, setting the standard as a first-of-its-kind treatment with potential benefits across various autoimmune diseases. Moreover, findings from both Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials have indicated that zetomipzomib boasts a safety record and is well-tolerated, making it a promising candidate for the treatment of severe and persistent autoimmune diseases.
