Sanofi is back with its second pact of the day, this time announcing a licensing deal for a South Korean biotech’s antibody therapy designed to treat Alzheimer's disease.
The French pharma is paying Adel—a clinical-stage biotech based in Seoul—$80 million in cash, with the total deal potentially reaching up to $1.04 billion, plus royalties, according to a Dec. 15 release shared after market close.
In return, Sanofi will gain exclusive global access to Adel’s antibody therapy coded ADEL-Y01, which holds first-in-class potential for Alzheimer's, according to the partners. Alongside the development and commercialization rights, Sanofi will also receive access to unnamed “related backup compounds.”
The investigational asset ADEL-Y01 is a humanized monoclonal antibody designed to selectively target tau protein acetylated at lysine-280 (acK280). The protein tau plays a major role in Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative conditions. ADEL-Y01 has been developed to stop the aggregation and spread of toxic tau, while saving the function of normal microtubule-associated tau.
ADEL-Y01 stems from the biotech’s neural disease research and novel platform targeting tau modification. In 2020, Adel and South Korea-based pharma Oscotec started co-developing the asset.
The antibody is currently being assessed in a global phase 1 trial.
“Adel’s innovative approach to targeting tau acetylation offers a promising and differentiated mechanism for addressing the underlying causes of Alzheimer’s disease,” Erik Wallstroem, M.D., Ph.D., Sanofi’s global head of multiple sclerosis, neurology and gene therapy development, said in the release.
“We look forward to advancing ADEL-Y01 through clinical development to provide new hope for patients living with this devastating condition,” Wallstroem added.
Earlier in the day, Sanofi announced the expansion of its partnership with Dren Bio in a bid to discover and develop a potential next-generation B-cell depleting therapy for autoimmune diseases. A few days before, the pharma forged a new partnership with U.S. biotech InduPro Therapeutics, also related to autoimmune conditions.
Also on Monday, the French drugmaker stumbled in its efforts to achieve a new multiple sclerosis approval. The hopes center on the pharma’s investigational BTK inhibitor tolebrutinib in non-relapsing secondary progressive MS (nrSPMS). The asset has been hit with an FDA delay, and a decision is now expected by the end of March 2026, Sanofi said in a release.
Adding to the BTK inhibitor's rough start to the week, Sanofi also shared that tolebrutinib missed the mark in a phase 3 study for primary progressive MS (PPMS). The drugmaker said it will not be seeking regulatory approval for the drug in the indication.
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