AstraZeneca’s Medimmune subsidiary announced a collaboration this morning with UK company Immunocore that will focus on the development of cancer therapeutics.
The two companies will work on new drug based on Immunocore’s Immune Mobilising Monoclonal T-Cell Receptor against Cancer (ImmTAC) technology, which encourages a patient’s own immune system to tackle tumours.
The deal potentially covers a number of targets, with AZ offering an upfront fee of $20m and up to $300m in development and milestone payments per programme, plus royalties if any of the therapies reach the market.
Immunocore also has collaborations in place with GlaxoSmithKline and Roche/Genentech, as well as its own melanoma therapy in phase II testing.