Ligand Earns Milestone from SAGE Therapeutics for SAGE-547
$150,000 payment triggered by start of Phase 1/2 clinical trial for
treatment of super-refractory status epilepticus
SAN DIEGO--
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: LGND) today
announced that it has earned a $150,000 milestone payment from SAGE
Therapeutics (SAGE) relating to the earlier commencement by SAGE of a
Phase 1/2 clinical trial of SAGE-547 for the treatment of
super-refractory status epilepticus (SRSE), a life-threatening seizure
condition in which the brain is in a state of persistent seizure.
SAGE-547 is an intravenous agent in Phase 1/2 clinical development as an
adjunctive therapy, a therapy combined with current therapeutic
approaches, for the treatment of SRSE. SAGE utilizes Ligand’s Captisol®
technology to develop SAGE-547 for status epilepticus (SE) and traumatic
brain injury. In 2013, Ligand entered into a platform license agreement
with SAGE for the development and commercialization of Captisol-enabled™
therapeutics for a broad range of debilitating central nervous system
conditions. Elements of that agreement were also recently expanded to
cover additional therapy areas for certain compounds.
“SAGE is a biopharmaceutical company committed to developing and
commercializing novel medicines to treat life-threatening, rare central
nervous system disorders. SAGE-547 is their lead product candidate. We
commend the SAGE team on their progress with this important new therapy
and also congratulate them on their recent receipt of U.S. Orphan Drug
Designation for SAGE-547 for the treatment of SE,” said John Higgins,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Ligand. “The treatment options
for status epilepticus, a life-threatening disease, are inherently
limited and there are no specifically approved therapies for SRSE. Our
partnership with SAGE is but one example of Ligand’s science and
technologies being utilized under licensing agreements to develop or
improve treatments across a variety of medical conditions.”
About Captisol®
Captisol is a patent-protected, chemically modified cyclodextrin with a
structure designed to optimize the solubility and stability of drugs.
The original form of Captisol was invented and initially developed by
scientists in the laboratories of Dr. Valentino Stella at the University
of Kansas’ Higuchi Biosciences Center for specific use in drug
development and formulation. This unique technology has enabled six
FDA-approved products, including Onyx Pharmaceuticals’ Kyprolis®, Baxter
International’s Nexterone® and Merck’s NOXAFIL® IV. There are more than
30 Captisol-enabled products currently in clinical development.
About Ligand Pharmaceuticals
Ligand is a biopharmaceutical company with a business model that is
based upon the concept of developing or acquiring royalty revenue
generating assets and coupling them to a lean corporate cost structure.
Ligand’s goal is to produce a bottom line that supports a sustainably
profitable business. By diversifying the portfolio of assets across
numerous technology types, therapeutic areas, drug targets and industry
partners, we offer investors an opportunity to invest in the
increasingly complicated and unpredictable pharmaceutical industry. In
comparison to its peers, we believe Ligand has assembled one of the
largest and most diversified asset portfolios in the industry with the
potential to generate revenue in the future. These therapies seek to
address the unmet medical needs of patients for a broad spectrum of
diseases including diabetes, hepatitis, muscle wasting, Alzheimer’s
disease, dyslipidemia, anemia, asthma and osteoporosis. Ligand’s
Captisol platform technology is a patent-protected, chemically modified
cyclodextrin with a structure designed to optimize the solubility and
stability of drugs. Ligand has established multiple alliances with the
world’s leading pharmaceutical companies including GlaxoSmithKline, Onyx
Pharmaceuticals (a subsidiary of Amgen Inc.), Merck, Pfizer, Baxter
International, Lundbeck Inc., Eli Lilly & Co. and Spectrum
Pharmaceuticals. Please visit www.captisol.com
for more information on Captisol and www.ligand.com
for more information on Ligand.
Follow Ligand on Twitter @Ligand_LGND.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements by Ligand that
involve risks and uncertainties and reflect Ligand’s judgment as of the
date of this release. These forward-looking statements include comments
regarding SAGE-547 and other drug candidates, data analysis and
evaluation of SAGE-547, utility or potential benefits to patients, the
potential commercial market for SAGE-547 and plans for continued
development and further studies of SAGE-547. Actual events or results
may differ from Ligand’s expectations. For example, there can be no
assurance that other trials or evaluations of SAGE-547 or other product
candidates will be favorable or that they will confirm results of
previous studies, that data evaluation will be completed or demonstrate
any hypothesis or endpoint, that SAGE-547 or other product candidates
will provide utility or benefits to certain patients, that any
presentations will be favorably received, that SAGE-547 or other product
candidates will be useful, that marketing applications will be filed or,
if filed, approved, or that clinical or commercial development of these
product candidates will be initiated, completed or successful or that
our rights to SAGE-547 and other related product candidates will not be
successfully challenged. The failure to meet expectations with respect
to any of the foregoing matters may reduce Ligand’s stock price.
Additional information concerning these and other risk factors affecting
Ligand can be found in prior press releases available at www.ligand.com
as well as in public periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, available at www.sec.gov.
Ligand disclaims any intent or obligation to update these
forward-looking statements beyond the date of this press release. This
caution is made under the safe harbor provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated
John L. Higgins, President and
CEO
(858) 550-7500
or
LHA
Bruce Voss, bvoss@lhai.com
(310)
691-7100
Source: Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated
Released May 12, 2014