The news that Momenta is acquiring Virdante’s Sialic Switch assets leaves me wondering about the timing. Virdante received $47.8M in Series A funding back in 2009 which should have been enough to let them get through Phase 1 and 2a clinical trials. Instead Virdante is opting to sell their primary program at the preclinical stage for $4.5M upfront. It seems to me that they are missing out on a potentially big inflection point in the value creation chain – proof of concept in humans. Have they run out of money or did they have too much sunk cost to attract new financing? Those are the only reasons I can come up with to explain why the investors would be willing to cash out now.
Virdante Pharmaceuticals was started in 2007 based on research conducted by Jeffrey Ravetch, M.D., Ph.D., of The Rockefeller University. He discovered “Sialic Switch” technology which could be used to improving antibodies’ anti-inflammatory properties. Sialic Switch refers to an enzymatic glycosylation process to sialylate the Fc-linked glycans that lack sialic acid. His understanding of sialyated antibodies began when it was recognized that some disorders caused by an overactive immune system could be treated by intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). Research showed that sialyated antibodies could be made by attaching sialic actid to antibodies lacking a sugar group. This in turn could improve their potency.
Part of Virdante’s business plan was to use their Sialic Switch technology to enhance other antibodies of Fc fusion products. Their hypothesis was adding sialic acid to the Fc component of antibodies such a sadalirumab or entenercept could enhance their anti-inflammatory capability and their effectiveness. Last year, Virdante announced that they developed a silyated version IVIG that is 10X more potent in preclinical models. At the time their CEO stated that their $47.8M series A was sufficient to take the compound to the clinic and to get POC in humans.
Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Inc. just announced that they are acquiring the Sialic Switch assets from Virdante Pharmaceuticals, Inc. They made an upfront payment of $4.5 million and may make additional milestone payments, which could add up to $51.5 million. It seems like Virdante is getting out of this business and turning over their “baby” to someone else to develop. If Virdante used up a large portion of their Series A getting to this point, the return on investment might be fairly small. In our experience, our clients are usually looking for their exit after a significant value inflection point such as after Phase 1 or Phase 2. I wonder what prompted Virdante to make this deal now instead of getting clinical data first.
Comments
Post has no comments.