Actithera Licenses Breakthrough Covalent Chemistry Technologies from Weizmann Institute for Next-Generation Radiopharmaceuticals
Key Insights
Actithera (search) secured exclusive rights to two patent families from Professor Nir London's laboratory at the Weizmann Institute, covering innovative covalent chemistry technologies for radiopharmaceutical applications.
The licensed technologies enable site-specific, durable and traceless protein radiolabeling approaches designed to enhance tumor selectivity and retention in radiopharmaceuticals.
These breakthrough approaches allow radioactivity to be introduced directly into tumor cells by irreversibly and tracelessly radiolabeling tumor-specific proteins while maintaining their native state.
Actithera (search), a biotechnology company pioneering next-generation radiopharmaceutical therapies, announced an exclusive license agreement with Yeda (search), the commercial arm of the Weizmann Institute of Science, for two patent families covering breakthrough covalent chemistry technologies. The agreement, announced on October 14, 2025, positions Actithera to advance its proprietary platform for radiopharmaceutical drug discovery and development using innovative approaches that could redefine targeted cancer treatment.
Revolutionary Covalent Chemistry Platform
The licensed technologies were developed in the laboratory of Professor Nir London, an internationally recognized leader in covalent drug design at the Weizmann Institute's Department of Chemical and Structural Biology. These approaches enable a highly differentiated method to introduce radioactivity selectively and durably onto tumor-specific proteins, offering the potential to transform how radiopharmaceuticals are conceived, optimized, and deployed in clinical settings.
The breakthrough lies in the technologies' ability to provide site-specific, durable and traceless protein radiolabeling approaches intended to enhance tumor selectivity and retention in radiopharmaceuticals. This innovation enables radioactivity to be introduced directly into tumor cells by irreversibly and tracelessly radiolabeling tumor-specific proteins while keeping them in their native state.
Strategic Integration and Clinical Applications
"This agreement represents an important step forward for Actithera (search)," said Andreas Goutopoulos, PhD, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Actithera. "By adding Professor London's pioneering chemistry to our toolkit of proprietary covalent and non-covalent approaches, we are uniquely positioned to unlock new opportunities in cancer treatment. This innovation from the Weizmann Institute enables us to introduce radioactivity directly into tumor cells by irreversibly and tracelessly radiolabeling tumor-specific proteins while keeping them in their native state. We believe that this combination of irreversibility and tracelessness can translate into prolonged retention of radiation within tumors and ultimately improve therapeutic outcomes."
The technologies will be integrated into Actithera (search)'s existing discovery platform as the company advances its lead FAP (search)-targeting radioligand candidate toward clinical development in multiple indications. This strategic expansion is supported by Actithera's recent oversubscribed $75.5 million Series A financing completed in July 2025, which is enabling the continued development of the company's proprietary RLT discovery platform and preclinical pipeline.
Academic-Industry Partnership
Elik Chapnik, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Yeda (search), emphasized the significance of the partnership: "We are pleased to partner with Actithera (search) in bringing Professor London's groundbreaking covalent chemistry technologies into the radiopharmaceutical field. Actithera's vision and expertise make them an ideal partner to translate these scientific advances into impactful cancer therapies that can benefit patients worldwide."
Professor Nir London expressed enthusiasm about the clinical translation of his research: "My lab has long been dedicated to expanding the possibilities of covalent drug design. Seeing our work translated into the radiopharmaceutical space through Actithera (search)'s innovative platform is particularly exciting given the field's potential to deliver targeted radiation directly to tumors while sparing healthy tissue. I look forward to supporting their progress as they advance these technologies toward clinical validation."
Expanding Therapeutic Arsenal
The covalent chemistry technologies from the Weizmann Institute represent one of several cutting-edge approaches integrated into Actithera (search)'s discovery engine, expanding the company's toolkit for building a pipeline of precision therapies addressing areas of high unmet need in oncology. Actithera combines expertise in medicinal chemistry, radiochemistry, and drug design to develop novel targeted therapies for cancer treatment, with headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Oslo, Norway.
Yeda (search) has an established track record in academic technology transfer, having driven the commercialization of breakthrough drugs including Copaxone®, Rebif®, Erbitux®, Humira®, and Yescarta®. The organization continues to bridge the gap between cutting-edge science and global impact through partnerships with leading companies worldwide.