Sanofi is offering Belharra Therapeutics up to $700 million in biobucks for a tow out to surf the waves of small molecule drug discovery in immunology.
The deal includes $40 million upfront and in near-term milestones for Belharra to use its non-covalent chemoproteomics platform to look for new ways to drug targets selected by Sanofi. The remaining cash will be in milestones spread throughout the collaboration, plus royalties.
“By leveraging Belharra’s chemoproteomics platform, we hope to explore immunology targets that, to date, have been considered undruggable,” said Sanofi’s John Bertin, global head of immunology and inflammation research.
Belharra, which launched in January 2023, has built an internal pipeline of therapies in oncology and immunology, however none have been publicly disclosed. The company emerged from stealth with $130 million in capital and a partnership already onboard with Roche’s Genentech. The Swiss pharma pitched in $80 million upfront and put $2 billion in milestones on the line.
The Genentech partnership also involves small-molecule drugs in oncology, immuno-oncology, autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases. No candidates have been disclosed from the deal yet.
Sanofi has been undergoing a major pipeline shakeup in an effort to become “an immunoscience powerhouse," according to an internal letter obtained by Fierce Biotech in April. CEO Paul Hudson laid out his vision in October 2023 to redirect resources toward therapeutic areas like immunology while saving cash.
In the company's earnings call in April, Sanofi's head of R&D Houman Ashrafian told analysts: “Our strategy is one of selectively investing in areas where we believe we have a chance to make a meaningful difference based on our expertise in immunology."