Ramaswamy's Axovant whips up a CNS spinoff with a $530M deal and a syndicate of supporters
After beefing up its arsenal of gene therapies-in-development in December following the striking failures of its once-hyped dementia and Alzheimer’s assets, Vivek Ramaswamy’s Axovant has now shaped itself into a full-fledged gene therapy company by transitioning its small molecule team into a new CNS entity — Switzerland-based Arvelle Therapeutics.
Arvelle has paid South Korea’s SK Biopharmaceuticals $100 million upfront for the European rights to an antiepileptic drug, cenobamate, which is currently under FDA review. SK is eligible to receive up to $430 million in regulatory and commercial milestones, and royalties on net sales generated in Europe. Arvelle plans to file an application to market the drug in Europe based on the data generated from SK’s global clinical trial program.
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