Houston-based Salarius Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: SLRX) is expanding its oncology drug pipeline with an acquisition.
The clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company inked an agreement to acquire a portfolio of clinical programs from Massachusetts-based DeuteRx LLC, including DeuteRx's lead candidate, SP-3164. To acquire DeuteRx's oral, small molecule-targeted protein degradation portfolio, Salarius paid $1.5 million in cash and 1 million shares of the company's common stock, according to filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
DeuteRx is also entitled to receive milestone payments based upon the future success of SP-3164, including $53 million in clinical and regulatory event-driven payments, $135 million in sales-achievement payments and escalating royalties on net sales, Salarius said.
In addition to DeuteRx's lead clinical candidate, the acquisition includes various patents and the opportunity to develop other undisclosed oncology assets in targeted protein degradation, Salarius said.
"SP-3164 provides entry into the exciting field of protein degradation, a fast-growing area of cancer drug research that is attracting substantial interest from some of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies because of the potential advantages of protein degraders, including the ability to go after previously undruggable cancer-promoting targets," said David Arthur, CEO of Salarius.
Salarius focuses on developing potential new treatments for patients with sarcomas, pediatric cancers and other cancers. The company's lead clinical compound, Seclidemstat, is undergoing a clinical trial for Ewing sarcoma and other sarcomas with similar biologies. A second clinical trial initiated by the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center is exploring Seclidemstat's ability to treat hematologic cancers.
"In addition to advancing Seclidemstat, our goal at Salarius is to develop a multiprong internal pipeline and advance cancer therapies that address the unmet needs of patients and, by doing so, generate value for patients and shareholders," Arthur said. "With SP-3164, Salarius plans to enter the protein degradation space which generated global sales of over $15 billion in 2020. Funded with existing financial resources, this acquisition capitalizes on our strong cash position and our Seclidemstat momentum."
Salarius went public through a reverse merger with Boston-based Flex Pharma Inc. in July 2019. The deal, announced in January 2019, valued Flex Pharma at $10.5 million and Salarius at $36.6 million.
Salarius relocated from Salt Lake City to Houston in 2016 when the firm received an $18.69 million grant from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, or CPRIT.
