Benzinga | Sep 1, 2021 12:25PM EDT

Brickell Biotech Acquires Rights To Candidate For Autoimmune Diseases

* Brickell Biotech Inc (NASDAQ:BBI) has entered into a definitive agreement with Voronoi Inc for exclusive, worldwide rights to therapeutics generated from a proprietary DYRK1A inhibitor platform.

* The DYRK1A inhibitors aim to restore immune balance in patients whose immune system has become dysregulated, thus offering potential across a wide array of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

* The initial lead program that Brickell will be advancing is BBI-02, a Phase 1-read DYRK1A inhibitor that has demonstrated compelling results in various preclinical models, including atopic dermatitis and rheumatoid arthritis.

* BBI-02 showed encouraging decreases in disease severity and reduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines compared to current standard-of-care agents.

* The Company plans to commence Phase 1 study for BBI-02 in 2022. Brickell will make a one-time payment to Voronoi of $2.5 million in cash and $2.5 million in shares of Brickell common stock.

* In addition, Brickell will pay Voronoi milestone payments of up to $211.0 million for BBI-02 and BBI-03.

* For the first next-generation product, Brickell will pay Voronoi milestone payments of up to $107.5 million.

* Brickell will also pay Voronoi tiered royalty payments ranging from low single digits up to 10% of net sales of products arising from the DYRK1A inhibitor platform.

* Price Action: BBI stock is down 1.29% at $0.73 during the market session on the last check Wednesday.