Pinetree Therapeutics (Pinetree), a biotech company specializing in anti-cancer drugs, announced on July 24th an exclusive licensing agreement with AstraZeneca (AZ) for its preclinical EGFR (Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor) degrader candidate.

Founded in Cambridge, Boston, Pinetree is a leader in the next-generation targeted protein degraders (TPD) field, focused on developing anti-cancer drugs to overcome resistance to existing cancer treatments and various other drugs.

Under this agreement, AstraZeneca will have exclusive global rights to develop and commercialize Pinetree’s preclinical EGFR degrader. Pinetree will receive up to $45 million in upfront and early milestone payments, with the total transaction value potentially exceeding $500 million, including additional payments for development and commercialization milestones, and tiered royalties on global sales upon commercialization.

Dr. Hojun Song, founder and CEO of Pinetree, expressed his excitement about the agreement with AstraZeneca, a global leader in the biopharmaceutical industry. He stated, "This agreement enables us to advance one of Pinetree's innovative receptor degrader programs to the clinical stage."

He added, "Pinetree's pan-EGFR degrader was developed using our proprietary multi-antibody platform, 'AbReptor.' This degrader has demonstrated preclinical anti-tumor activity when used alone in tumors resistant to drugs and TKIs. Additionally, it has shown enhanced anti-tumor efficacy when used in combination with EGFR inhibitors."

Puja Sapra, Senior Vice President of Oncology R&D at AstraZeneca, remarked, "Targeted protein degradation is a promising field. We are pleased to secure exclusive rights through this agreement to develop Pinetree's pan-EGFR degrader for the treatment of patients with EGFR mutations and expressed cancers."

Founded in 2019, Pinetree focuses on overcoming drug resistance in oncology and other fields. The company's AbReptor platform is an innovative antibody platform designed to degrade cell membrane receptors and plasma proteins. Leveraging this platform, Pinetree is developing preclinical candidates across oncology and various therapeutic areas.