Boehringer Ingelheim and Sosei Group Corporation announced they have entered a global collaboration and exclusive option-to-license agreement. At the center is a joint mission to develop and commercialize Sosei Heptares? portfolio of first-in-class GPR52 agonists, a novel G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) target, with the intent to improve patient outcomes by simultaneously addressing positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia.

The development of a new schizophrenia treatment targeting GPR52 has the potential to address all three aspects of schizophrenia providing a novel precision treatment. This is based on the location of the receptor in the two areas of the brain that drive the positive (the striatum) and the negative and cognitive symptoms (the prefrontal cortex). The GPR52 agonism calms the striatum while boosting frontal cortical function, which achieves further precision in treatment.

About the Agreement: Sosei Heptares will receive an upfront payment of EUR 25 million from Boehringer Ingelheim upon signing and is eligible for an option exercise payment of EUR 60 million and further development, regulatory and commercialization milestone payments totaling up to EUR 670 million plus customary tiered royalties for a clinical-stage asset on future Boehringer Ingelheim product sales. Under the terms of the agreement, Boehringer Ingelheim has the exclusive option to license Sosei Heptares? portfolio of GPR52 agonists following the completion of Sosei Heptares?

ongoing Phase 1 and subsequent Phase 1b trial and further Phase 2 enabling activities with HTL0048149, a first-in-class GPR52 agonist. Sosei Heptares will retain control and act as sponsor of these trials until option exercise, estimated in 2025. The licensed portfolio will include HTL0048149 as well as multiple differentiated back-up compounds designed by Sosei Heptares using its StaR technology and structure-based drug design (SBDD) platform.