Lisata Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:LSTA, FRA:8NE) said it has mutually terminated a licensing and collaboration agreement with China’s Qilu Pharmaceutical, regaining full rights to its cancer drug candidate certepetide in the Greater China region.
The February 2021 agreement granted Qilu exclusive rights to develop and commercialize certepetide in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.
The deal was originally negotiated by CEND Therapeutics and assumed by Lisata following its acquisition of CEND in 2022.
As a result of the termination, all licensed rights revert to Lisata.
“We appreciate the collaboration and the work performed by Qilu with certepetide over the past few years,” Lisata’s CEO David Mazzo said in a statement.
Qilu will remain responsible for completing and winding down an ongoing Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating certepetide in combination with standard-of-care chemotherapy for metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, Lisata said.
The company added it has agreed to negotiate with Qilu on the potential licensing of data generated from the study, as appropriate.