Sparks - Basilea Pharmaceutica

Basilea Pharmaceutica has signed an early-stage discovery and development partnership with Prokaryotics, a US-based private company focused on antibacterial discovery. Under the agreement, the companies will jointly develop a novel class of broad-spectrum antifungals, targeting invasive yeast and mould infections. The programme will be jointly advanced through candidate selection, after which Basilea will assume full responsibility for clinical development. Financial terms include an undisclosed upfront payment and near-term milestones, but we expect these to be relatively modest. Once a clinical candidate is selected, Prokaryotics will be eligible to receive up to $48.5m in milestone payments as well as tiered low single-digit royalties on sales.

We view this collaboration as strategically consistent with Basilea’s focus on developing a strong anti-infective pipeline across the clinical development continuum. The agreement complements the company’s existing antifungal franchise, anchored by Cresemba (the current market leader in mould infections) and fosmanogepix, a Phase III, broad-spectrum antifungal with activity against both invasive yeast and mould infections.