Acumen, JCR enter agreement to develop therapeutic candidate for Alzheimer’s

JCR Pharmaceutical announced a joint collaboration, option and license agreement with Acumen (ABOS) to develop a novel therapeutic candidate for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. The collaboration focuses on developing a blood-brain barrier-penetrating treatment for Alzheimer’s that combines JCR’s J-Brain Cargo with Acumen’s amyloid beta oligomer-selective antibodies, which target toxic soluble AssOs, a key pathological driver in the onset and progression of Alzheimer’s disease. The program aims to demonstrate the feasibility of J-Brain Cargo in delivering sabirnetug and other AssO-selective antibodies across the BBB to slow the progression for AD pathology. Under the terms of the agreement, JCR will receive an upfront payment from Acumen and will be eligible for an additional option payment should Acumen exercise its exclusive option to develop, manufacture, and commercialize worldwide up to two candidates from the collaboration. JCR will also be eligible to receive future milestone payments of up to $40M related to development, and up to $515M related to sales, for a total of up to $555M. In addition, JCR is entitled to receive tiered royalties based on net sales for any products that emerge from the collaboration.