AstraZeneca signs US$1.92 billion licensing deal with HK-listed CSPC

Hong Kong-based CSPC will also get an upfront payment of US$100 million as part of the deal

AstraZeneca said on Monday (Oct 7) it would pay up to US$1.92 billion to CSPC Pharmaceutical Group in an exclusive licence agreement to boost the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker’s cardiovascular pipeline.

Apart from the aforementioned milestone and royalty payment, Hong Kong-based CSPC will also get an upfront payment of US$100 million as part of the deal.

CSPC will develop an early-stage, novel small molecule Lipoprotein (a) disruptor, which could offer benefits to patients with high levels of “bad cholesterol”, AstraZeneca said.

Lp(a) is a form of low-density lipoprotein that plays a role in transporting cholesterol in the blood stream.

AstraZeneca said it would have access to CSPC’s pre-clinical candidate small molecule – YS2302018 – an oral Lp(a) disruptor, with the aim to develop it as a lipid-lowering therapy.

The asset could help address the major risk factors driving chronic cardiovascular diseases, alone or in combination with other drugs, including AstraZeneca’s oral small molecule PCSK9 inhibitor AZD0780, it said.

AZD0780 is being developed as a therapy for patients with dyslipidaemia that cannot be controlled alone by statins, which are drugs that lower blood cholesterol. PSCK9 is a well-known and validated target in lipid metabolism. REUTERS