American biotechnology company Matchpoint Therapeutics has entered into an exclusive option and license agreement with Novartis to develop and commercialise oral covalent inhibitors targeting a transcription factor linked to a number of inflammatory diseases.

Under the terms of the agreement, Matchpoint will utilise its Advanced Covalent Exploration (ACE)TM platform to advance its preclinical program through development candidate selection.

The ACE TM platform integrates a suite of leading covalent drug discovery capabilities and is deployed toward validated, disease-causing protein targets that are yet undrugged or inadequately addressed by conventional approaches.

Matchpoint will lead all research activities to that point and will receive research funding from Novartis. It will receive up to USD 1 billion in total payments, including development and commercial milestones, plus tiered royalties on future product sales.

If Novartis exercises its option to license the program exclusively, it will have global rights to develop and commercialise all products resulting from the collaboration.

“This collaboration highlights the potential of our targeted approach to covalent chemistry to unlock novel mechanisms and achieve superior pharmacology,” said Andre Turenne, President and CEO of Matchpoint Therapeutics.

“We are thrilled to collaborate with Novartis, not only for its leadership in immunology research, but also for its outstanding drug development and commercialisation track record. These capabilities will ensure that our program has the maximum impact for patients.”

Richard Siegel, Global Head of Immunology Research at Novartis, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to developing innovative approaches for patients living with inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.

“We are excited to partner with Matchpoint to advance covalent medicines with the potential to address unmet medical needs and historically undruggable targets,” he said.

Aquilo Partners LP and Ropes and Gray LLP acted as financial and legal advisors to Matchpoint on this transaction, respectively.   

Based in Watertown, Massachusetts, United States, Matchpoint is a privately held biotechnology company harnessing the power of covalency to discover precision oral medicines to transform the treatment of immune diseases.

Headquartered in Switzerland, Novartis is a multinational pharmaceutical company that focuses on four core therapeutic areas: cardiovascular -renal - metabolic, immunology, neuroscience and oncology.