Santaris Pharma in multi-million dollar deal with Bristol-Myers for RNA-targeted medicines

Danish privately held clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company Santaris Pharma says it has entered into a worldwide strategic alliance with US drug major Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) to discover and develop novel medicines using Santaris’ proprietary Locked Nucleic Acid (LNA) drug platform.

Under the terms of the agreement, Santaris Pharma will receive an upfront payment of $10 million, up to $90 million in potential milestone payments per product and funding of ongoing discovery and research activities. In addition, Santaris Pharma will be eligible to receive royalties on the worldwide sales of all medicines arising from the alliance.

Announcing the alliance, Santaris president and chief executive Henrik Stage said: "We are delighted to welcome Bristol-Myers Squibb as a new partner. This strategic alliance further consolidates Santaris Pharma’s leadership in the field of oligonucleotide therapeutics." Henrik Orum, chief scientific officer, added: “We are confident that the unique features of the LNA drug platform can achieve clinical breakthroughs and look forward to working closely with the Bristol-Myers Squibb team."