Cephalon Australia granted exclusive license to develop Innate Immune's antibodies for treatment of asthma, SLE

Innate Immune, Inc., a privately held biotechnology company, today announced that it has granted to Cephalon Australia Pty Ltd an exclusive license to patents for the development of its antibodies for the treatment of asthma and systemic lupus erythematosis (SLE). Cephalon Australia Pty Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cephalon, Inc. As part of the agreement, Cephalon Australia will humanize the antibodies using their proprietary technology and conduct all development and clinical work related to the product candidate(s). In early-stage development, Innate Immune demonstrated that blocking the activation of natural killer T (NKT) cells using the antibody was effective for the treatment of asthma and SLE in preclinical animal models. The financial terms of the licensing agreement were not disclosed.

“We look forward to Cephalon Australia's further development of this exciting product candidate which has the potential to address important medical needs.”

"Based on our deep understanding of the pivotal role NKT cells play in human health and disease, we have built a strong portfolio of therapeutic leads against multiple disease indications," commented Andrew Perlman, M.D., Ph. D., Innate Immune’s Founder and CEO. "We look forward to Cephalon Australia's further development of this exciting product candidate which has the potential to address important medical needs."