Eli Lilly and Mediar Therapeutics Collaborate on Novel IPF Treatment with $780M+ Deal

Licensing Agreement:
Mediar Therapeutics and Eli Lilly have entered into a global licensing agreement to advance MTX-463, a first-in-class human IgG1 antibody targeting WISP1, into a Phase 2 clinical trial for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF)123.

Financial Terms:
Mediar will receive $99 million upfront and near-term milestones, with potential for up to $687 million in downstream development and commercialization milestones, plus high-single to low-double-digit royalty payments on future product sales123.

Clinical Development:
The Phase 2 IPF study, expected to initiate in the first half of 2025, will be conducted by Mediar. Following completion, Lilly will lead further clinical development and commercialization efforts123.

MTX-463 Background:
MTX-463 has shown promising results in a Phase 1 study in healthy volunteers, demonstrating good tolerability and engagement with WISP1 at all tested doses123.

Mediar’s Portfolio: Beyond MTX-463, Mediar is independently advancing two other fibrosis programs:
MTX-474, targeting EphrinB2 signaling, and a SMOC2 program, with plans to nominate a clinical candidate in the first half of 202513.

Impact on IPF Space:
The partnership is expected to shake up the competitive IPF space, which recently saw promising clinical readouts from other companies like Boehringer Ingelheim3.

Sources:

1. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mediar-therapeutics-enters-into-global-licensing-agreement-with-lilly-to-advance-first-in-class-wisp1-antibody-for-the-treatment-of-idiopathic-pulmonary-fibrosis-ipf-302347905.html

2. https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/news/mediar-deal-lilly-ipf/

3. https://www.biospace.com/business/lilly-makes-780m-ipf-play-with-mediar-partnership