X-Chem Expands Collaboration with Janssen in Inflammatory Diseases

X-Chem, Inc. announced that it has expanded its collaboration with Janssen Biotech, Inc., one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, to discover new drug leads for the treatment of inflammatory disease. The multi-target expansion builds on the parties’ existing discovery and license partnership, entered into in December 2014, and was facilitated by Johnson & Johnson Innovation. This latest agreement will apply X-Chem’s DEX™ platform to the identification of novel modulators for challenging disease targets, following the licensing of multiple series of X-Chem-discovered small molecules by Janssen in 2016. Under the terms of the agreement, X-Chem receives an upfront payment and research funding, and is eligible to receive additional payments and royalties based on the achievement of clinical, regulatory and commercial milestones.

“We are pleased with this research alliance and the decision to increase the scope of the original agreement,” said Rick Wagner, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Founder of X-Chem. “We are excited to continue our work with Janssen and discover the next generation of anti-inflammatory therapies.”