BioLineRx Ltd (BLRX)

[midastouch017]

Partnering

In-Licensing

BioLineRx partners with innovative researchers, universities and companies in order to further the development of drug candidates towards advanced clinical studies and regulatory approvals.

Working hand in hand with our Oncology Scientific Advisory Board, we apply a complex and rigorous evaluation process in order to select the most promising projects for our pipeline. Once a project is accepted, we design a comprehensive drug development plan and assume full responsibility for its advancement and success.

Throughout the development process, our team actively involves the inventors, companies and universities as partners in the drug development program.

Strategic collaborations

In December 2014, we entered into a strategic, multi-year co-development agreement with Novartis for co-development of selected programs, with an emphasis on Israeli-sourced programs. Novartis chose BioLineRx as its leading partner for identification and early development of novel Israeli-sourced drug candidates. The companies intend to co-develop a number of pre-clinical and early clinical therapeutic projects through clinical proof-of-concept.

In January 2016, we entered into a collaboration agreement with MSD (known as Merck in the US and Canada) to run a Phase 2a study in pancreatic cancer using the combination of BL-8040 and Merck’s KEYTRUDA®. We initiated this study in the second half of 2016 with the objective of demonstrating that the combination of drugs has the potential to expand the benefit of immunotherapy to cancer types currently resistant to immuno-oncology treatments.

In September 2016, we entered into a collaboration agreement with Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, to investigate the combination of BL-8040 and Genentech’s atezolizumab in several Phase 1b studies for multiple solid tumor indications and AML. Again, the objective is to expand the benefit of immunotherapy to cancer types currently resistant to immuno-oncology treatments.

Other Partnering and Collaboration Agreements

In August 2016, we entered into a joint venture with I-Bridge Capital, a Chinese venture capital fund focused on developing innovative therapies in China. The joint venture, named iPharma, will develop innovative clinical and pre-clinical therapeutic candidates originating primarily in Israel to serve the Chinese and global healthcare markets.. We will screen and identify promising early-stage drug candidates with emphasis on therapeutic indications that are of special interest for the Chinese population. These therapeutic candidates will then be in-licensed by iPharma for further development and commercialization in China as well as other regions. The project screening process has begun and the first project has already been brought into the company.

In May 2016, we entered into a collaboration with MaRS Innovation, the commercialization agent for fifteen of Toronto’s top academic institutions. Under the terms of the agreement, we intend to review innovative projects and assets of startup companies originating from MaRS Innovation’s members, to identify in-licensing, co-development or other partnering opportunities.

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