Saniona’s CEO: “The deal with Acadia is significant”
Saniona has announced a partnership with Acadia Pharmaceuticals to develop and commercialize SAN711. The total potential deal size is USD 610 million, including an upfront payment of USD 28 million—almost mirroring Saniona’s market value before the announcement. BioStock reached out to CEO Thomas Feldthus for a comment.
SAN711 is a first-in-class positive allosteric modulator of GABAA α3 receptors, developed through Saniona’s proprietary ion channel drug discovery platform. Yesterday, Saniona announced a licensing agreement with U.S based Acadia Pharmaceuticals for SAN711 in neurological diseases.
Under the terms of the agreement, Acadia will finance and lead the further clinical development, regulatory processes, and global commercialization of SAN711. Meanwhile, Saniona will oversee the completion of the ongoing phase I trial and support preparations for phase II.
Acadia plans to initiate a phase II study in essential tremor, the first targeted indication, in 2026. Essential tremor is a neurological disorder characterized by involuntary shaking, representing a significant unmet medical need.
Financial Structure of the deal
The agreement includes an upfront payment of USD 28 million and the potential for up to USD 582 million in milestone payments. The first milestone payment of USD 10 million will be triggered by initiating the first phase II study. Saniona is also eligible for tiered royalties ranging from mid-single digits to low double digits on global net sales.
The potential milestone payments
Subsequent development steps will trigger additional payments. For example, USD 147 million will be disbursed upon achieving milestones related to clinical development, regulatory objectives, and/or commercialization steps for potential first and second indications. The agreement’s structure suggests that further indications beyond essential tremor may be explored in the future.
In addition, Saniona will receive up to USD 435 million based on reaching threshold levels for annual global net sales of SAN711.
Comments from the CEO
BioStock spoke to CEO Thomas Feldthus for a comment.
Thomas, what does this partnership mean for Saniona’s future, and what are its broader implications for the company?
— Acadia is an exciting company that shares our vision and is dedicated to developing SAN711 for essential tremor and other indications. This partnership demonstrates the value of our early-stage pipeline and our ability to monetize this value. Finally, it restores our balance sheet and enables us to develop some of our other assets.
How will the USD 28 million upfront payment impact the company’s immediate priorities?
— The deal includes an upfront payment and an early-stage milestone payment, plus certain payments to the ongoing Phase 1 study and other services. This adds up to around 40 million USD prior to the start of Phase 2. This amount enables us to move several assets forward to the next inflection point.
Why was essential tremor chosen as the first indication for SAN711?
— Essential tremor is interesting due to the size of the market and the medical need in this indication. It is a relatively common disease that affects about 5 per cent of adults over the age of 60. Many patients are not well treated with the current drugs, and the pipeline of new drugs is thin. This indication also fits well into Acadia’s current products and pipeline.
And what makes Acadia the right partner for SAN711’s global development and commercialization?
— Acadia has successfully developed and commercialized several first-in-class products for various indications, including a drug to treat hallucinations and delusions associated with Parkinson’s disease psychosis and a drug for the treatment of Rett syndrome. SAN711 fits very well into Acadia’s pipeline and product portfolio.
— Acadia is directly represented commercially in the most important market, America, and has established partnerships in other major markets.
How does SAN711 stand out in the landscape of neurological treatments?
— SAN711 represents a precision approach as it only modulates one type (GABAA a3) of the many different GABAA ion channels in the brain. GABAA a3 accounts for only 5% of the GABAA ion channels in the brain. However, these ion channels are almost exclusively expressed on neurons found in a small area called the cortico-thalamic (TRN) system.
— This means that SAN711 can slow down the firing of the neurons in this area without affecting other areas in the brain. Therefore, SAN711 is highly relevant for treating neurological diseases caused by too much activity in this area of the brain. This precision approach means that SAN711 has very few side effects.
The deal suggests that more indications could be explored later on. Can you comment on this?
— There are several diseases and medical conditions where it could be beneficial to slow down the activity of neurons in the cortico-thalamic (TRN) system including neurological disease such as essential tremor and absence seizures as well as other types of diseases such as certain sleep disorders and neuropathic pain.
What role will this deal play in advancing Saniona’s broader pipeline?
— It is very challenging for biotech companies to finance the development of their pipeline under the current financial conditions in the Swedish ecosystem. We have now resolved this problem ourselves for the next several years.
Finally, what opportunities could it create for future partnerships?
— As mentioned, there is a good fit between the companies. We are strong in drug discovery and early clinical development, whereas Acadia is strong in late-stage development and commercialization. I trust that our relationship will be strengthened in the coming period. It is much easier to communicate with people you know and trust. This may serve as a base for new collaborations in future.
— We have had several collaborations with the same companies or the same people in the past. Boehringer Ingelheim is a good example. AstronauTx is another good example, as we have worked with several of the people in AstronauTx in the past through their roles in other companies.
— The deal with Acadia also represents a significant deal, which may indirectly promote our company in the industry.
The content of BioStock’s news and analyses is independent but the work of BioStock is to a certain degree financed by life science companies. The above article concerns a company from which BioStock has received financing.
