La Mesa-based Regen BioPharma Inc. has inked a deal with global pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly and Co., Regen announced Thursday.
The deal allows Regen to receive compounds from Lilly for drug discovery purposes and allows Regen to share structural information on compounds of mutual interest.
The agreement also grants to Lilly an option to negotiate a compound purchase agreement with Regen, along with a license agreement, or a research collaboration agreement for further research and development of material of mutual interest.
“Lilly’s Open Innovation Drug Discovery Program is visionary,” said Harry Lander, president and chief scientific officer of Regen, in a statement. “They understand the value of partnering in a confidential manner with smaller entities that may have intellectual property that aligns with their product goals.”
As part of the deal, Regen will examine 21,000 Lilly-owned compounds in its NR2F6 high-throughput screening program as it attempts to identify activators and inhibitors of this protein. Regen will share the experimental data with Lilly and the two companies will jointly decide on next steps.
Regen BioPharma is developing immunotherapies and cancer stem cell therapies for rapid commercialization. The company is specifically focused on human therapies that address unmet medical needs.
