Fosun Pharma has paid $60 million for an option on AriBio’s late-phase Alzheimer’s disease program, securing the chance to expand its rights to the asset in exchange for a further $80 million.
The deal covers AR1001, a once-daily oral phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) inhibitor that South Korea’s AriBio is evaluating in a global phase 3 clinical trial. Viagra, an erectile dysfunction drug, is the best-known PDE5 inhibitor. Preclinical studies suggest the mechanism drives neuroprotective effects, fueling reviews and clinical trials designed to determine whether PDE5 inhibitors can treat or cut the risk of Alzheimer’s.
AriBio is poised to help answer the question, with top-line results from its phase 3 trial due this year. The Korean biotech moved the asset into phase 3 despite a midstage study missing its primary efficacy endpoints, which looked at two Alzheimer’s symptoms scales at Week 26. Researchers hailed favorable changes in Alzheimer’s-related plasma biomarkers as a positive results of the failed phase 2 study.
The $60 million upfront payment ensures Fosun can license AR1001 in markets including the U.S., Europe and Japan on pre-agreed terms, which include an $80 million option fee and undisclosed development, regulatory and sales milestones.
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Exercising the option will expand Fosun’s rights to AR1001. The biopharma already has rights to the molecule in China under the terms of a deal it struck with Neuco UnitedCo last year. AriBio outlicensed the Chinese rights to AR1001 for about $90 million upfront in 2024.
The expanded deal “marks a significant step in Fosun’s international strategy in innovative medicines,” Guo Guangchang, chairman of Fosun International, said in a statement. Having created Fosun Pharma USA in 2017, the Chinese drugmaker has worked to establish a commercial portfolio in the U.S.
The deal continues Fosun’s push into Alzheimer’s. In December, Fosun invested about $200 million for a 53% stake in Green Valley Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturer of a seaweed-derived drug that received conditional approval in China. Green Valley reportedly stopped making the product last year and failed to renew the license before it expired.
