Sutro Biopharma, Inc. a clinical-stage drug discovery, development and manufacturing company focused on the application of precise protein engineering and rational design to create next-generation cancer and autoimmune therapeutics, announced an exclusive license agreement with Tasly Biopharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. a holding subsidiary of Tasly Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. for the development and commercialization of STRO-002 in Greater China, consisting of mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. STRO-002 is a FolRα-targeting antibody-drug conjugate, currently in clinical studies for patients with ovarian and endometrial cancers in the U.S. and Europe.
Under the terms of the agreement, Sutro will receive an upfront payment of $40 million and be eligible to receive potentially up to $345 million in development and commercial milestone payments. Tasly will pursue the clinical development, regulatory approval, and commercialization of STRO-002 in Greater China for ovarian and endometrial cancers, with the potential to expand to further oncological indications including non-small cell lung cancer and triple-negative breast cancer. Sutro retains development and commercial rights of STRO-002 outside of Greater China. Sutro will be responsible for the clinical trial and initial commercial supply of STRO-002 for trials in the licensed territory pursuant to a supply agreement according to customary terms. Upon commercialization, Sutro will receive tiered, double-digit royalties based on annual net sales of STRO-002 in Greater China.
"We are delighted to gain access to this promising drug, which has the potential to be the best-in-class FolRα ADC for patients with debilitating cancers, including ovarian cancer and potentially FolRα-expressing cancers. There is a huge unmet need for oncology patients within Greater China and we look towards future development and commercialization of STRO-002 to serve these needs."
Kaijing Yan, Chairman of the Board
Bill Newell, Chief Executive Officer of Sutro added, "This agreement further validates our emerging clinical data surrounding the development of STRO-002. Tasly is an excellent partner for our Greater China collaboration, with a history of successful execution for developing and commercializing therapeutics. We are delighted to broaden the geographical footprint of STRO–002 and allow greater access for cancer patients to a new possible treatment option."
About Tasly Biopharmaceuticals
Tasly Biopharmaceuticals was founded in 2001 and has more than 20 years of experience in the independent research and development and commercialization of biopharmaceutical products. As a leading innovative biopharmaceutical company in China, Tasly Biopharmaceuticals has a commercialization platform integrating research and development, manufacturing and sales. The company is one of the few pharmaceutical companies in China that can apply perfusion cell culture technology to long-term large-scale commercial production; the company has successfully developed and commercialized its flagship biologic product, Pro-UK, which has great potential to become a blockbuster thrombolytic drug in China.
The company focuses on the development of biopharmaceutical products in the three therapeutic areas including cardio-cerebrovascular, oncology & autoimmune, and alimentary tract & metabolism, and it currently has 16 biopharmaceutical pipeline products. The company aims to bring affordable and first-in-class/best-in-class biologic drugs to Chinese patients to meet the growing and unmet clinical needs in the targeted therapeutic areas.
About Sutro Biopharma
Sutro Biopharma, Inc., located in South San Francisco, is a clinical-stage drug discovery, development and manufacturing company. Using precise protein engineering and rational design, Sutro is advancing next-generation oncology therapeutics.