Actimed Therapeutics and Faraday Pharmaceuticals Announce License Agreement for S-oxprenolol

Actimed Therapeutics and Faraday Pharmaceuticals Announce License Agreement for S-oxprenolol

• Faraday to make upfront payment and equity investment in Actimed
• Actimed is eligible to receive up to $123.5 million in milestone payments plus royalties on future sales
• Upfront cash and equity payments received will further support the ongoing development plans of Actimed for ACM-001 (S-pindolol) in cancer cachexia and S-oxprenolol in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
• S-oxprenolol adds an important second compound to the Faraday portfolio in addition to FDY-5301

London, UK and Seattle, WA– 13 April 2021. Actimed Therapeutics Ltd., a clinical stage company focused on bringing innovation to the treatment of muscle wasting disorders, with a focus on cachexia, today announced a license agreement for S-oxprenolol to Faraday Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on improving outcomes of critical illnesses by reducing the loss of cardiac and skeletal muscle function. S-oxprenolol is one of a new class of anabolic-catabolic transforming agents (ACTAs) under development by Actimed. Using a similar mode of action as ACM-001 (S-pindolol), the lead asset of Actimed, S-oxprenolol exhibits a multi-modal pharmacology that specifically targets the underlying pathophysiology of cachexia, and has demonstrated significant beneficial effects on survival, body mass and functional parameters in pre-clinical models of cancer cachexia.

Under the terms of the agreement, Actimed will receive an upfront payment of $550,000 in equity investment and cash and is also eligible to receive a near-term milestone payment of $2.7m and up to $123.5m in total potential milestone payments. Actimed is also eligible to receive royalties on any future sales of S-oxprenolol. Faraday gains global rights to develop and commercialize S-oxprenolol for cancer cachexia and any other indications outside of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Actimed retains global rights to S-oxprenolol in ALS, where loss of body mass and muscle wasting can impact survival.

Robin Bhattacherjee, Actimed CEO, commented: “I am delighted with our agreement with Faraday for S-oxprenolol which is an important and mutually beneficial agreement for both companies. As well as providing a strong partner to continue the development of S-oxprenolol, this deal enhances our ability to speed up and further advance the development of our lead candidate ACM-001 (S-pindolol) towards Phase 2 clinical studies for cancer cachexia in patients with non-small cell lung cancer and colorectal cancer. We are also pleased to retain rights to S-oxprenolol for ALS, an indication where patients suffer similar life-threatening muscle-wasting effects.”

Steve Hill, Faraday CEO, added: “We are pleased to partner with Actimed on S-oxprenolol as we are committed to developing and advancing therapies that will prevent and treat cardiac and skeletal muscle loss associated with multiple morbidities. S-oxprenolol is highly complementary to our existing portfolio and will further strengthen our product pipeline.”