Camurus and Eli Lilly and Company have announced a major collaboration and license agreement worth up to $870 million, focused on developing long-acting incretin therapies for cardiometabolic diseases including diabetes and obesity. The partnership grants Lilly exclusive worldwide rights to research, develop, manufacture, and commercialize long-acting incretin products based on Camurus' proprietary FluidCrystal technology.
Strategic Partnership Details
The collaboration encompasses up to four Lilly proprietary drug compounds selected from dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonists, triple GIP, glucagon and GLP-1 receptor agonists, and includes an option to incorporate amylin receptor agonists. This comprehensive approach targets multiple pathways involved in glucose regulation and metabolic health.
"We are pleased to enter into this collaboration with Lilly to bring innovative long-acting treatment options to people living with obesity, diabetes, and other serious chronic diseases," said Fredrik Tiberg, President & CEO, CSO of Camurus. "Through the collaboration with Lilly, a global leader in the metabolic disease area, we leverage our FluidCrystal technology in rapidly expanding indication areas impacting hundreds of millions of people, while maintaining our own commercial focus on CNS and rare diseases."
Financial Structure and Milestones
Under the agreement terms, Camurus is eligible to receive up to $290 million in upfront, development, and regulatory milestone payments, plus an additional $580 million in sales-based milestone payments. The company will also receive tiered mid-single digit royalties on global net product sales, bringing the total potential value to $870 million.
FluidCrystal Technology Platform
Camurus' FluidCrystal technology represents a significant advancement in long-acting drug delivery systems. The technology is designed to deliver therapeutic levels of drug substances over extended periods ranging from days to months with a single injection using a prefilled syringe or autoinjector pen. Upon contact with bodily fluids in tissue, the lipid solution transforms into a liquid crystalline gel that effectively encapsulates the active ingredient. As the liquid crystalline matrix gradually degrades in the tissue, the drug is slowly released in a controlled manner.
The technology platform has already achieved commercial and regulatory validation through market approvals and product sales in Europe, the United States, and Australia, demonstrating its proven track record in clinical applications.
Market Impact and Strategic Focus
This partnership allows Camurus to expand its technology platform into the rapidly growing cardiometabolic disease market while maintaining its core commercial focus on central nervous system disorders and rare diseases. The collaboration leverages Lilly's established leadership position in metabolic diseases and global commercialization capabilities.
Camurus operates as an international, science-led biopharmaceutical company with a broader R&D pipeline that includes products for treating dependence, pain, cancer, and endocrine diseases. The company maintains operations across Europe, the United States, and Australia, with headquarters in Lund, Sweden, and trades on Nasdaq Stockholm under the ticker CAMX.
