(Reuters) -Gilead Sciences has entered into an option and license deal with Kymera Therapeutics to support the development and sales of a class of cancer drugs, the companies said on Wednesday.
As part of the deal, Gilead would pay as much as $750 million, including up to $85 million upfront, in exchange for an option to gain global rights to develop, manufacture and sell Kymera’s drug candidates that belong to a class called molecular glue degraders.
Kymera is also eligible to receive tiered royalties on net sales of the drugs under the deal.
Compared to traditional cancer drugs that inhibit the action of an associated protein, Kymera’s drugs are designed to selectively eliminate proteins called CDK2, or cyclin-dependent kinase 2.
“This mechanism aligns within our oncology scientific framework where we evaluate therapeutic agents that selectively target and kill cancer cells with minimal impact on healthy tissue,” said Flavius Martin, executive vice president of research at Gilead.
Kymera said it would lead all research activities for the drugs currently tested in preclinical studies and advance it as a potential treatment for breast cancer and other solid tumors.
The deal with Kymera is expected to reduce Gilead’s 2025 profit per share by about two to three cents, the companies said.
(Reporting by Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
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