Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and CAMP4 Therapeutics, a bioinformatics startup, are partnering with a focus on identifying druggable targets for possible treatments of a rare disease of the liver.
The deal pairs Alnylam’s RNAi therapeutics expertise with CAMP4’s platform that decodes the physical structures used to unlock and turn on or off the expression of individual genes that can cause a disease.
Under terms of the deal, CAMP4 will get an undisclosed upfront payment from Alnylam, with additional milestone payments. CAMP4 could receive additional payments dependent on development, regulatory approval and sales milestones and well as royalties on products developed.
“Our Gene Circuitry Platform is yielding the first-ever, comprehensive and dynamic understanding of the Cellular Operating System used by human liver cells to regulate the activation of genes and is applicable to any disease-associated genes in the liver,” Josh Mandel-Brehm, CAMP4’s chief executive, said in a statement. "We look forward to applying this knowledge to elucidate the optimal targets Alnylam can explore for potential RNAi intervention for a disease where there are currently no available treatment options.”
CAMP4, which was formed in 2016, reeled in $30 million in series A funding last year. In November, Vir Biotechnology announced it was initiating a phase 1/2 trial of its gene-silencing drug for hepatitis B, the first clinical candidate from its partnership with Alnylam.