Ascidian Therapeutics, Eli Lilly Join Hands To Develop Devastating Kidney Disease Therapies

(RTTNews) - Wednesday, Ascidian Therapeutics along with Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) announced a global research collaboration and licensing agreement to discover and develop therapies for undisclosed monogenic kidney diseases, with the option to expand to additional target

As per the terms of the deal, Lilly will receive exclusive, target-specific rights to Ascidian's RNA exon editing technology for undisclosed kidney disease targets. Meanwhile, Ascidian is eligible to receive up to $1.9 billion, including an upfront payment, development and commercial milestone payments, and tiered royalties on commercial sales worldwide.

Under the agreement, Ascidian will lead discovery and selected preclinical activities, with Lilly responsible for additional preclinical work, clinical development, manufacturing, and commercialization.

In the pre-market hours, LLY is trading at $1,066, up 0.11 percent on the New York Stock Exchange.