SPARC Gains On Acquiring Bioprojet’s Rights For Drug

Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company (SPARC) rose 2.71% to Rs 167 after the company entered into licensing agreement with Bioprojet to acquire exclusive rights for investigational medicinal product, SCD-044.

Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company (SPARC) announced on Thursday that it has entered into an agreement with Paris-based Bioprojet SCR (Bioprojet) to exclusively acquire Bioprojet’s rights to the investigational medicinal product SCD-044. SPARC and Bioprojet co-owned all SCD-044 related IP, developed through a research collaboration targeting Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Receptors (S1PR) to treat various autoimmune disorders. The acquisition includes full assignment of all patents and patent applications owned or controlled by Bioprojet related to SCD-044.

SCD-044 is a novel investigational oral, selective S1P1 receptor agonist under development for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. Phase 1 studies for SCD-044 have been completed.

“This is an important deal for us. SPARC has been working on SCD-044 in collaboration with Bioprojet. This acquisition will provide us with expanded freedom to operate and an opportunity to build on promising data from early stage clinical trials,” said Anil Raghavan, CEO of SPARC. “This agreement is further evidence of SPARC’s commitment to seek out novel treatments to address important unmetmedical conditions.”

Under the terms of the agreement, Bioprojet is eligible to receive milestones and royalties on net sales of SCD-044.

SPARC reported a net loss of Rs 63.16 crore in Q2 September 2019, higher than net loss of Rs 2.58 crore Q2 September 2018. Revenue from operations slumped 71.98% to Rs 17.19 crore in Q2 September 2019 over Q2 September 2018.

SPARC is a pharmaceutical company focused on continuously improving standards of care for patients globally through innovation in therapeutics and delivery. SPARC consistently aims to lower costs and improve operational efficiencies to advance availability and affordability of cures for patients across the world.-Business Standard