Sept. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- ImmunoGen, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGN - news) and Abgenix, Inc. (Nasdaq: ABGX - news) today announced a collaboration providing Abgenix with access to ImmunoGen's maytansinoid Tumor-Activated Prodrug (TAP) technology for use with Abgenix's fully human antibodies generated with XenoMouse(TM) technology. ImmunoGen will receive $5 million in technology access fee payments, as well as potential milestone payments, and royalties on net sales of any resulting products. In addition, Abgenix will purchase $15 million of ImmunoGen common stock at $19.00 per share.
The multi-year agreement provides Abgenix with a broad license to utilize ImmunoGen's maytansinoid TAP platform in its antibody product research efforts and an option to obtain product licenses for a large number of antigen targets over the agreement's ten-year term. Abgenix will be responsible for manufacturing, product development and marketing of any products developed through the collaboration. ImmunoGen may produce preclinical and clinical material, at Abgenix's request, for a manufacturing payment.
``Having access to ImmunoGen's existing TAP technology will allow Abgenix to extend its product reach, particularly in the oncology field,'' said R. Scott Greer, chairman and CEO of Abgenix. ``Many of the targets emerging from our antigen sourcing collaborations may be appropriate for tumor-activated prodrug therapy. The alliance represents another example of how Abgenix is assembling the technologies necessary to rapidly move from a genomics target to an effective therapeutic product.'' |
