Pentixapharm Acquires Target Discovery Business of Glycotope

Pentixapharm AG recently announced the execution of an agreement, effective July 1, to acquire the target discovery business of Berlin-based Glycotope GmbH.

The deal encompasses a portfolio of preclinical antibodies against multiple oncology targets that can be developed into radiopharmaceuticals. It also includes Glycotope’s laboratories, cell banks, tumor target data base, and the equipment needed to exploit the discovery platform, along with a range of patents, licenses, and other tangible assets. In total, Pentixapharm will be able to add an integrated team of 40 seasoned executives, R&D specialists, and administrators to its staff.

“The acquisition will broaden Pentixapharm’s Intellectual Property portfolio beyond the one built around the CXCR4 receptor. This will immediately double the development pipeline and significantly expand the associated business and clinical development opportunities,” explained Hakim Bouterfa, CEO of Pentixapharm AG. “Glycotope’s pipeline comprises several candidates that can be used immediately for proof-of-concept studies as next generation radiopharmaceuticals. We look forward to maximizing the synergy of Pentixapharm’s know-how and Glycotope’s target discovery for the benefit of patients in both diagnostics and therapeutic applications.”

“The transaction provides Pentixapharm not just with a chance to build a clinical pipeline beyond the company’s current CXCR4-ligand based programs, but also substantially strengthens its administrative and managerial capacities,” noted Andreas Eckert, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of both Pentixapharm and mother company Eckert & Ziegler SE (EZAG). “It adds a critical number of talents to the planned secession of Pentixapharm to Frankfurt Stock Exchange, thereby facilitating a seamless separation from EZAG. The offices and laboratories included in the deal are large enough to allow a consolidation of all Berlin-based activities into one location.”

The transaction will also affect the composition of the Pentixapharm Management Board once the company becomes listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Hakim Bouterfa, current CEO of Pentixapharm, is designated to move to the Company’s Supervisory Board. He will be succeeded by Dirk Pleimes, currently Pentixapharm’s Chief Medical Officer. Patrik Kehler, former Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) of Glycotope, will assume the CSO position at Pentixapharm, while Glycotope’s former CEO, Henner Kollenberg, will take over the responsibility for administrative and business development issues as Chief Business Officer.

Patrik Kehler, newly appointed Chief Scientific Officer of Pentixapharm, explained: “The target discovery unit’s development activities focus on tumor-associated carbohydrate structures, so-called GlycoTargets. Their major advantage is the reduced normal tissue binding compared to conventional antibodies. Based on their superior tumor-specificity, they are suitable for development in an array of different modes of action. In the radiopharmaceuticals field, they have the potential to close the treatment gap that exists for the majority of solid tumors.”

The target discovery unit utilizes a proprietary technology platform to develop uniquely tumor-specific monoclonal antibodies or fragments thereof. They target specific tumor-associated carbohydrate structures or protein/carbohydrate combined glycoepitopes (GlycoTargets). The unit has to date discovered in excess of 200 GlycoTargets (www.glycotope.com). Many of these have been outlicensed to major pharmaceutical companies around the world, where they are currently in pre-clinical and clinical development.

Pentixapharm is a radiopharmaceutical development company founded in 2019 with its headquarters in Würzburg, Germany. It is currently wholly owned by the Eckert & Ziegler Group but bound to be spun-off to the Frankfort Stock Exchange soon. Pentixapharm is committed to developing CXCR4 ligand-based first-in-class radiopharmaceutical approaches with a clear commercial pathway for diagnostic and therapeutic programs in a number of hematological and solid cancers, as well as cardiovascular, endocrine and inflammatory diseases.

Pentixapharm’s clinical pipeline encompasses PENTIXATHER, am Yttrium-90 based therapeutic against CNS lymphoma, and PENTIXAFOR, a Gallium-68 based companion diagnostic. Clinical studies for both compounds have already commenced in Europe, with a dose-finding study for PENTIXATHER and a Phase III registration study for PENTIXAFOR. Additionally, PENTIXAFOR is being developed as a diagnostic tool for primary aldosteronism (PA), a significant cause of hypertension. Pentixapharm is currently preparing a US centric Phase III registration study in PA that will start in 2025.