Goodwin advised Warp Drive Bio, Inc., a drug discovery company developing therapeutics that exploit the molecules and mechanisms of nature, on its strategic collaboration with Roche to discover and develop multiple novel classes of antibiotics. The serious global health threat of multidrug-resistant bacterial infections has created an urgent need for new antibiotics with novel structures and mechanisms of action.
Under the terms of the agreement, Roche has an option for an exclusive worldwide license to develop and commercialize certain antibiotic classes that emerge from the collaboration, triggered upon the selection of a drug development candidate from the particular class. Warp Drive will retain worldwide rights to all other novel antibiotic classes from the collaboration Warp Drive will receive up to $87 million in upfront payment, option fees, and milestone payments for preclinical events, and up to $300 million in payments related to specific clinical, regulatory and sales milestones on products licensed to Roche. In addition, for products licensed to Roche, Warp Drive is eligible to receive tiered royalties for development candidates up to double digits on future net sales.
Warp Drive Bio is exploiting the molecules and mechanisms of nature to create transformative medicines. The company operates on the core principle that nature is the world’s most powerful inventor of new drugs, unconstrained by the mechanistic and synthetic limitations of traditional medicinal chemistry. Warp Drive Bio is deploying its proprietary Genome Mining™ and SMART™ (Small Molecule Assisted Receptor Targeting) platforms to discover novel medicines that have the potential to make a significant difference in patients’ lives. The company was launched in 2012 through a strategic partnership with Sanofi and with financing from Third Rock Ventures and Greylock Partners.
The Goodwin team was led by partner Kingsley Taft and associate Noelle Dubiansky.
For additional information, please read the company’s press release.