C4X Discovery Receives Milestone Payment From Sanofi, Reflecting Project Advancement

C4X Discovery Holdings Ltd, a leading drug discovery company, has announced the receipt of an €8 million milestone payment from Sanofi, marking continued pre-clinical progress in their joint oral IL-17A inhibitor programme. This payment is part of an ongoing licensing agreement between the two companies that began in April 2021.

The collaboration aims to develop an oral small-molecule therapy targeting IL-17A, a cytokine known to play a key role in driving inflammation. The goal is to provide an effective oral alternative to currently available injectable biologic treatments for inflammatory diseases. Conditions such as psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis are among the primary targets for this new therapy, which, if successful, could address a large and growing market with significant unmet needs.

Emma Blaney, CEO of C4X Discovery, mentioned, “This latest pre-clinical milestone in our agreement with Sanofi is a testament to the hard work of the drug discovery team and the strength of the partnership. We remain excited by the potential of this oral IL-17A inhibitor programme to transform treatment options for patients living with debilitating inflammatory diseases. We are proud that our innovative drug discovery capabilities continue to be recognised by global pharmaceutical leaders.”

David Lawrence, Chairman of C4X Discovery, said in a statement, “The progress of the oral IL-17A inhibitor programme is a reflection of the growing commercial and scientific value of our wider pipeline. With three partnered programs and several other high value programs in discovery, including alpha4beta7 and PAD4, this provides further validation of our differentiated approach to drug discovery. We are now planning to prepare our lead programs for clinical development.”

As part of the original license deal, C4X Discovery is eligible to receive up to €414 million in total, which includes upfront, pre-clinical, development, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments, along with royalties on future net sales. With the latest payment, the company has now received a total of €18 million from Sanofi, covering both upfront and pre-clinical milestones.

This milestone underscores the steady progress of the IL-17A programme and highlights the ongoing collaboration between the two companies as they work toward the development of an innovative oral treatment for inflammatory diseases. C4X Discovery’s partnership with Sanofi reflects its growing reputation in drug discovery and its ability to translate early-stage science into promising therapeutic candidates.