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Plus Therapeutics Licenses Novel Oncology Platform, Expands Pipeline
Multiple Clinical & Preclinical Candidates for Rare Cancers, Including a Novel Radiotherapeutic for Glioblastoma AUSTIN, Texas, March 30, 2020 (GLOBE
About this update from Plus Therapeutics, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Multiple Clinical & Preclinical Candidates for Rare Cancers, Including a Novel Radiotherapeutic for Glioblastoma\n AUSTIN, Texas, March 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Plus Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: PSTV) (the “Company”), today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to license multiple rare cancer drug product candidates from private Texas-based radiotherapeutic company NanoTx Therapeutics, Inc. (“NanoTx”) The transaction terms include an upfront payment of $400,000 in cash and $300,000 in Plus voting stock. Furthermore, the company may pay up to $136.5 million in development and sales milestone payments and a tiered single-digit royalty on U.S. and European sales. The transaction, subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close in the second quarter of fiscal 2020. The licensed drug portfolio is anchored around nanoliposome-encapsulated radionuclides for several cancer targets. The lead drug asset is a chelated Rhenium NanoLiposome (RNLTM), initially being developed for recurrent glioblastoma. RNL is infused directly into the brain tumor via precision brain mapping and convection enhanced delivery technology to deliver very high therapeutic doses of radiation to patients whose cancer has recurred following initial surgical resection and treatment with chemotherapy and radiation. The licensed radiolabeled nanoliposome platform was developed by a multi-institutional consortium based in Texas at the Mays Cancer Center / UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson Cancer Center led by Dr. Andrew Brenner, MD, PhD, who is the Kolitz Chair in Neuro-Oncology Research and Co-Leader of the Experimental and Developmental Therapeutics Program. The licensed technology was previously funded by both the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute (NIH/NCI) and the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). There is an active $3M award from NIH/NCI which will financially support the continued clinical development of RNL for recurrent glioblastoma. “Dr. Brenner and his team have developed a very unique and promising novel cancer drug portfolio to address a significant number of unmet needs,” said Dr. Marc Hedrick, President and Chief Executive Officer of Plus Therapeutics. “Nanoliposome-encapsulated radionuclides are a natural extension of our pipeline and will become an increasing focus of our ...