Japan-based JCR Pharmaceuticals Co., a global specialty biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing therapies for rare and genetic diseases, has announced a joint collaboration, option and license agreement with US-based Acumen Pharmaceuticals to develop a novel therapeutic candidate for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), enabled by JCR’s proprietary blood-brain barrier (BBB)-penetrating technology platform, J-Brain Cargo®.
The collaboration focuses on developing a blood-brain barrier-penetrating treatment for Alzheimer’s that combines JCR’s J-Brain Cargo® with Acumen’s amyloid beta oligomer (AβO)-selective antibodies, which target toxic soluble AβOs, a key pathological driver in the onset and progression of Alzheimer’s disease. The program aims to demonstrate the feasibility of J-Brain Cargo® in delivering sabirnetug and other AβO-selective antibodies across the BBB to slow the progression for AD pathology.
Under the terms of the agreement, JCR will receive an upfront payment from Acumen and will be eligible for an additional option payment should Acumen exercise its exclusive option to develop, manufacture, and commercialize worldwide up to two candidates from the collaboration.
JCR will also be eligible to receive future milestone payments of up to $40 million related to development, and up to $515 million related to sales, for a total of up to $555 million (approximately JPY80.5 billion converted at the exchange rate of JPY 145 to USD). In addition, JCR is entitled to receive tiered royalties based on net sales for any products that emerge from the collaboration.
