SPARC Forms Licensing Agreement With JHU & IOCB for Alopecia Drugs

Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company Ltd. (SPARC) announced an agreement with Johns Hopkins University (JHU) and The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences (IOCB) (Licensors) to exclusively license SCD-153, which includes all patents and patent applications owned or controlled by the licensors. SPARC had evaluated SCD-153 under a Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) after which it entered into an Option to License Agreement with the licensors. SPARC’s IND was approved by Drug Controller General of India (DCGI).

Under the terms of the agreement, the licensors are eligible for upfront payment, milestone payments contingent upon the achievement of regulatory and sales milestones, as well as tiered royalties on sales, as per pharmabiz. “The licensing of SCD-153 marks another successful collaboration between SPARC and an academic institute under our outreach programme with academia. Topical SCD-153, upon successful development, can provide an important option to clinicians and patients for the treatment of alopecia areata," said Anil Raghavan, CEO of SPARC. SPARC, JHU, and IOCB collaborated to develop SCD-153, a first-in-class topical medication for the treatment of alopecia areata. TET2, IFN-ß, IkBz-mediated IL-6, and inflammasome pathways are all inhibited by SCD-153. It also activates the antioxidant KEAP1/Nrf2 signaling pathway. In-vivo studies have shown that SCD-153 accelerates the transition of hair follicles from the telogen to anagen phase, resulting in hair growth. Sun Pharma Advanced Research firm Ltd is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical firm dedicated to consistently enhancing patient care standards throughout the world via therapeutic and delivery innovation. SPARC's goal is to increase the availability of treatment choices for people all around the world.