Bridge Biotherapeutics Signs US$40M License Agreement with Daewoong for Co-development of UC Drug Candidate

Bridge Biotherapeutics Inc., a clinical stage biotech company headquartered in Seongnam, South Korea, announced that the company signed a license agreement with Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for development of BBT-401, the first anti-Pellino-1 compound currently under development for ulcerative colitis (UC) treatment.

The company had entered a licensing and collaboration agreement with Daewoong Pharmaceutical to co-develop a new clinical-stage drug candidate for the treatment of patients with UC. Under the terms of the agreement, Bridge Biotherapeutics will receive up to USD 40 million for an upfront and milestone payments during development and commercialization. In return, Daewoong Pharmaceutical will acquire the exclusive right for the development and commercialization of BBT-401 in 22 Asian countries, including China, Japan and Korea.

The two companies now plan to initiate clinical development for BBT-401 in Asian countries, preceded by the Phase II study in the U.S. with active UC patients.

“Our team is excited to begin a valuable collaboration with Daewoong, a South Korean pharmaceutical giant, which has a rich experience in developing and manufacturing drugs for digestive system disorders,” and “We strongly believe the cooperation and the alliance will advance BBT-401’s fast development, which will better address UC patients’ unmet medical needs,” stated James Lee, CEO of Bridge Biotherapeutics.

“Daewoong Pharmaceutical now plans to develop a first-in-class drug for severe and currently untreatable inflammatory disease treatment, such as UC, with the in-licensing and co-development agreement with Bridge Biotherapeutics,” and “Daewoong will continue to pursue open-collaboration relationships with local and international companies for new drug developments,” Sengho Jeon, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical said.

BBT-401, discovered by SKKU (Sungkyunkwan University) and KRICT (Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology) is a GI-tract restricted small molecule inhibitor of Pellino-1. From the Phase I study, the drug candidate was proved to be well tolerated and safe in humans. Bridge Biotherapeutics plans to initiate the Phase II study, which is expected to be initiated within this year to evaluate the safety and investigate the efficacy of the drug candidate in selected groups of patients.