Sobi signs $450M deal for rare disease drug emapalumab, boosting its inflammation, I/O pipeline
Swedish drugmaker Sobi has bought global rights to a late-stage rare disease drug from Novaimmune SA, building up its inflammation business and potentially lining up a good chunk of new revenue should the drug get approved.
Sobi paid $50 million upfront for the licensing pact, with an additional $400 million over the next 8 years. In return, it’s getting a global license for Novaimmune’s orphan drug candidate emapalumab, which treats a severe rare disease called (stay with me) Haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. HLH for short. This is a hematologic disorder more often seen in children than adults. Patients with HLH have overactive immune systems, with a proliferation of lymphocytes and macrophages that cause inflammation. Instead of destroying damaged cells in the body, the immune system goes after the patient’s own tissues and organs. HLH is classified as one of the cytokine storm syndromes.
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