A strategic agreement has been signed by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Orchard Therapeutics, involving the transfer of GSK’s portfolio of approved and investigational rare disease gene therapies to Orchard.
Sign agreement
Through this agreement, Orchard will strengthen its position in gene therapy for rare diseases and GSK will continue to invest in the development of its platform capabilities in cell and gene therapies, with a focus on oncology. Additionally, GSK will become an investor in Orchard, receiving a 19.9% equity stake along with a seat on the company’s board.
Furthermore, under the terms of the agreement, GSK will receive financial considerations in the form of royalties and commercial milestone payments related to the acquired portfolio. The companies will exchange manufacturing, technical and commercial insights and learnings on the development of gene therapy medicines to ensure the success of the assets.
“GSK is proud of the advances we have achieved in collaboration with the cell and gene therapy pioneers at Ospedale San Raffaele, Fondazione Telethon and MolMed in Milan,” said John Lepore, senior vice president, R&D pipeline, GSK. “Since we announced our intent to review these medicines, our goal has been to identify the right owner who can build on what we’ve already achieved, and can advance these important medicines for patients, allowing GSK to focus on building its broader cell and gene therapy platform capabilities. Orchard are committed to patient access, and we’re confident that this agreement combined with the ongoing relationship between the two companies will support the progression of these valuable programmes to enable them to benefit patients.”
“Acquiring this portfolio further advances Orchard’s vision to be a global, fully integrated company leading the field of gene therapy for rare diseases,” revealed Mark Rothera, CEO, Orchard. “The acquisition immediately expands our primary immune deficiency and inherited metabolic disorder franchises and adds the potential for other franchises in the future. At Orchard, we are committed to transforming the lives of patients with rare diseases through innovative gene therapies. We look forward to building upon the great achievements of GSK and its collaborators. This acquisition and the planned transfer of the agreement with MolMed secure the continued development of GSK’s programmes and leverages Orchard’s deep expertise and capabilities. In the two late stage programmes MLD and WAS for example, the clinical data are very encouraging and we look forward to continuing to progress development.”
“We are confident that the agreement between GSK and Orchard Therapeutics represents a good opportunity for the future prospects of the gene therapy programmes developed at the San Raffaele-Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy,” added Francesca Pasinelli, General Manager of Fondazione Telethon. “Orchard Therapeutics’ commitment to rare diseases will secure continuity of efforts for all diseases in the pipeline. As a charity born out of patients' need, this will enable us to fulfil our vision, which is to bring viable therapies to people struggling with rare genetic disease.”
Orchard Therapeutics will assume all obligations arising from GSK’s 2010 collaboration agreement with the Ospedale San Raffaele and Fondazione Telethon and from GSK’s collaboration agreement with MolMed.
In order to support a smooth transition of these programmes with minimal disruption to the projects, both companies have agreed to a transition period during which GSK will continue to conduct certain activities through to the end of 2018.