Cellzome enters $25M kinase alliance with GSK

Privately-held US drug discovery firm Cellzome has entered a worldwide strategic alliance with UK drug major GlaxoSmithKline to look for novel kinase-targeted therapeutics treating inflammatory diseases.

Under the terms of the agreement, the US firm will receive upfront payments of 14.4 million ($25.3 million) comprised of both cash and equity. Cellzome is eligible for up to 118.0 million per program in potential development, regulatory and commercial milestones and as much as double-digit royalties on net sales of products.

The alliance gives GSK access to Cellzome's expertise in identifying and developing selective kinase inhibitors and its proprietary Kinobeads technology which, by screening compounds in a physiological setting, is designed to improve the predictability of these drug candidates' performance in clinical testing. Kinases are key molecular switches in cellular signaling events with a central role in many inflammatory responses, the firms noted.