ImmunoGen gets $1.5M milestone from Biogen

ImmunoGen, a US biopharmaceuticals company that develops targeted anticancer therapeutics using its Tumor-Activated Prodrug technology, says that its partner, Biogen Idec, has submitted an Investigational New Drug application for BIIB015.

The agent comprises ImmunoGen's cell-killing agent, DM4, linked to Biogen Idec's Cripto-targeting antibody, and is in development by the latter for the treatment of solid tumors that express the Cripto antigen. This triggers a $1.5 million milestone payment to the former.

Commenting on the move, Mitchel Sayare, chief executive of Immunogen, said: "we outlicense our TAP technology to other companies for use with their proprietary antibodies both for the financial return and to expand the number of compounds in development. We expect there to be as many as eight TAP compounds in the clinic by this summer - the five already in human clinical testing plus three more compounds advancing toward the clinic."