Dec. 19 Quick Takes: Ionis, Otsuka in European deal for HAE therapy

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) has chosen Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. as its European partner for ligand-conjugated antisense oligonucleotide therapy donidalorsen, ahead of results due next half from a Phase III program to treat hereditary angioedema. The Japanese company is paying $65 million up front; Ionis is eligible for milestones, plus royalties of 20-30%. Ionis intends to commercialize donidalorsen, which targets prekallikrein mRNA, on its own in the U.S. The biotech is building commercial operations to co-commercialize amyloidosis therapy eplontersen along with AstraZeneca plc (LSE:AZN; NASDAQ:AZN), and to launch triglyceridema treatment olezarsen and donidalorsen without a partner in the U.S.

Kimia Therapeutics Inc. raised $55 million in a series A round led by The Column Group and Dimension. Spun out of Carmot Therapeutics Inc. in January, Kimia is using its ATLAS chemistry drug discovery platform to develop small molecules with an initial focus on oncology, immunology and inflammation. The Column Group was the largest shareholder in Carmot, which announced earlier this month that it was being acquired by Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY) for $2.7 billion up front. Horizons Ventures and individual investors are also participating in Kimia’s series A round...