Benzinga | Jan 13, 2021 08:34AM EST

Ligand Receives $1.5M Milestone Payment From Merck, Triggered By FDA Acceptance For Review Of BLA For V114

Milestone payment triggered by acceptance for review of a BLA for V114, an investigational 15-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine that utilizes Ligand's CRM197 carrier protein

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) today reported that the company will receive a $1.5 million milestone payment from Merck triggered by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) acceptance for review of a biologics license application (BLA) for V114, an investigational 15-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine candidate for the prevention of pneumococcal disease in adults.

"This collaboration with Merck is one of the core assets that catalyzed our acquisition of Pfenex last October," said John Higgins, Chief Executive Officer of Ligand. "If commercially launched, Ligand is entitled to a low-single-digit royalty on net sales of V114. The CRM197 carrier protein produced via our patent protected Protein Expression Technology platform is utilized in the V114 vaccine program."