Luxna Biotech Co., Ltd. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited announced that it has entered into an exclusive worldwide license agreement with Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited for the use of Luxna’s breakthrough xeno nucleic acid technology for multiple undisclosed target genes in the area of neurological diseases.
Osaka, Japan, February 24, 2022 Luxna Biotech Co., Ltd. (President & CEO: Hideaki Sato, Headquarters: Suitashi, Osaka, Japan, hereinafter “Luxna”) today announced that it has entered into an exclusive worldwide license agreement with Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (“Takeda”) for the use of Luxna’s breakthrough xeno nucleic acid technology (hereinafter “Luxna XNAs Technology”) for multiple undisclosed target genes in the area of neurological diseases. Under the license agreement, Takeda will have the exclusive right to develop and commercialize nucleic acidbased therapies using Luxna XNAs Technology for specified targets.
Luxna will receive an undisclosed upfront payment upon execution of the license agreement. Luxna may receive up to a total of 10 billion yen including the upfront payment and future development and commercial milestone payments over the course of the partnership if all milestones for each target are achieved. Luxna is also eligible to receive royalties based on net sales of any commercial product developed from the partnership.
Luxna XNAs Technology originated in Professor Obika’s laboratory at the Osaka University Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Bioorganic Chemistry. Licensing this innovative technology to Takeda has the potential to accelerate the development of nucleic acidbased therapies for neurological diseases.
About Luxna Biotech Co., Ltd.
Luxna is a biotech that was founded to support the discovery of medicines for patients who are suffering from diseases that are amenable to oligonucleotide therapeutics by installing nucleic acid pharmaceutical element technologies accumulated in Osaka University to promote safer and more effective oligonucleotide therapeutics in the clinical setting. Luxna actively promotes codevelopment with some pharmaceutical companies and inhouse drug discovery with antisense oligonucleotides (hereinafter “ASOs”) as our main development drugs.
About Luxna XNAs Technology
Luxna XNAs Technology collectively means an innovative nucleic acid group of AmNA, scpBNA and GuNA accumulated in Professor Obika’s laboratory (Osaka University Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Bioorganic Chemistry). Luxna XNAs Technology could make available ASOs that satisfy requirements for both a high level of activity and low toxicity, by taking advantage of its haracteristics of high affinity for mRNA and reduced hepatotoxicity.
