Triana Biomedicines, Inc.

Is 2024 the year of molecular glues? Biogen on Tuesday became the latest company to partner on the increasingly popular subject, teaming up with private San Diego biotech Neomorph. Biogen will pay Neomorph an undisclosed upfront sum while promising up to $1.45 billion in various milestones and royalties in the mid-single-digit to low-double-digit range. The deal follows a Novartis partnership earlier this week with Monte Rosa for $150 million upfront , and a Pfizer deal this month that saw the company shell out $49 million upfront to Triana Biomedicines. Other large pharmas like Takeda, Eisai and Novo Nordisk have also bought into the space. Novo’s deal in February was also with Neomorph. Biogen and Neomorph will work on “several high-priority targets,” the company said in a press release, but did not say which ones. Meanwhile, on Wednesday morning, Biogen released its third-quarter earnings update, raising its annual EPS guidance by 35 cents from the midpoint of its earlier estimate. Biogen now expects a yearly earnings per share of between $16.10 and $16.60, up from between $15.75 and $16.25. The raise comes in tandem with Biogen’s partner Eisai saying quarterly sales of their Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi totaled 10 billion Japanese yen, or about $65.4 million.

Novartis is getting a hold of one of Monte Rosa Therapeutics’ clinical-stage molecular glues, and it’s putting more than $2.2 billion on the table. That includes $150 million upfront for MRT-6160, according to Monday’s announcement. Novartis will get full global rights to the drug, which is currently in a Phase 1 healthy volunteer study for immune-mediated conditions, and it will assume development responsibilities beginning in Phase 2. Monte Rosa remains responsible for all Phase 1 work. MRT-6160 is a VAV1-targeting molecule that was first dosed in the Phase 1 trial several months ago. That signaling receptor works downstream of T cell and B cell receptors, according to Monte Rosa, and may reduce cytokine proteins that fuel autoimmune conditions when modulated. Monte Rosa CEO Markus Warmuth said in an interview that the specificity of the compound sets it apart. “We really get very deep, and in many cases, also prolonged pathway modulation,” he said, underscoring that it’s also important that the asset demonstrates clear safety. “I think with ‘6160 we’ve landed one of those.” Novartis research chief Fiona Marshall said in a statement that the company was excited about the molecular glue’s “potential to provide a new therapeutic option for people living with a range of immune-mediated conditions.” It’s the second major deal in the molecular glue category this month. About two weeks ago, Pfizer paid $49 million upfront to Triana Biomedicines for multiple drug targets, with more than $1.5 billion in biobucks available as well. Other large pharmas like Takeda , Eisai and Novo Nordisk have also bought into the space. Warmuth said the deal with Novartis was a competitive process, and there were “certainly a few others looking as well.” Back in May, Monte Rosa raised $100 million, which extended the biotech’s runway into the first half of 2027. Warmuth declined to specify if the new money extends that any further. It also expects to have more data this year on its lead asset, MRT-2359, which will include the planned Phase 2 dose. Toxicity was an issue at a higher dose range based on data presented a year ago , with three patients reporting grade 4 side effects, though each case resolved with dose reductions.

Pfizer and Triana Biomedicines have entered into a strategic collaboration and licensing agreement worth over $1.5bn to discover molecular glue degraders (MGDs) for cancer and other severe diseases. MGDs are a new class of drugs that can be directed at targets that have previously been considered ‘undruggable’ by other approaches. The partnership will leverage Triana’s molecular glue and E3-ligase pairing platform to identify new MGDs against multiple targets across various disease areas, including oncology. Triana will lead the discovery and identification of potential development candidates, while Pfizer will have the option for an exclusive license to pursue further preclinical and clinical development. In exchange, Triana will receive an upfront payment of $49m from Pfizer and will be eligible for potential future milestone payments exceeding $1.5bn, as well as tiered royalties. Jeff Settleman, chief scientific officer of Pfizer Oncology, said: “We look forward to working together to advance scientific innovation for patients living with cancer.” Triana’s president and chief executive officer, Patrick Trojer, added that the company is “thrilled to partner with Pfizer to create potentially transformative medicines for disease targets with critical unmet needs”. Drugmakers have been increasingly focused on MGDs, which eliminate disease-causing proteins by promoting their interaction with the cell’s ubiquitin-proteasome system. In August, Eisai partnered with SEED Therapeutics to develop MGDs for multiple undisclosed neurodegeneration and oncology targets. The alliance, worth up to $1.5bn, will see SEED lead preclinical discovery activities for the selected targets, including E3 ligase selection and identification of appropriate MGDs. Eisai will then have exclusive rights to develop and commercialise any resulting compounds. Takeda entered the MGD field in May with its $1.2bn partnership with Degron Therapeutics for targets in oncology, neuroscience and inflammation, while Novo Nordisk entered into a $1.46bn collaboration and licensing agreement with Neomorph in February to develop MGDs for cardiometabolic and rare diseases. Other recent MGD-centred deals include Roche’s agreement with Monte Rosa Therapeutics and Merck & Co’s – known as MSD outside the US and Canada – multi-year collaboration with Proxygen.