Boehringer Ingelheim and MiNA Therapeutics have signed an agreement to develop new compounds to treat fibrotic liver diseases such as NASH, based on the latter鈥檚 small activating RNA (saRNA) therapeutics platform.
Under the collaboration and licensing agreement, MiNA will receive up to 鈧�307m of upfront payment and committed research funding, as well as potential research, development and regulatory milestone payments.
The company will also receive royalties on sales of selected products as a result of the partnership.
Under the new partnership, Boehringer proposes to advance new treatment approaches and advance its clinical offerings in cardiometabolic diseases.
The partnership will see the combination of MiNA鈥檚 experience in the development of saRNAs with Boehringer鈥檚 experience in bringing new treatments to patients with cardiometabolic disease.
Boehringer Ingelheim Discovery Research corporate senior vice-president Clive Wood said: 鈥淭his new collaboration is another sign of our ongoing commitment to patients with cardio-metabolic diseases, including NASH.
鈥淚t will combine MiNA鈥檚 pioneering work with saRNAs with our expertise in biopharmaceutical research and development.鈥�
NASH is a major cause of liver fibrosis and cirrhosis that is highly prevalent among obese and diabetic patients with no treatments available at present.
It is expected to become the most common cause of advanced liver disorders.
As part of the collaboration, the companies will identify targets to restore metabolic functionality of hepatocytes and prevent fibrotic tissue formation in patients with NASH.
Furthermore, Boehringer will be able to design, profile and develop novel compounds, potentially also creating opportunities for combination with its other NASH-pipeline assets.
