Curacle and Maptics License Bispecific Antibody MT-103 to Memento Medicines in $1.08 Billion Deal for Retinal Disease Treatment
核心洞察
Curacle (搜索) and Maptics (搜索) have licensed their preclinical bispecific antibody MT-103 to U.S.-based Memento Medicines (搜索) for up to $1.08 billion, targeting retinal diseases (搜索) including wet age-related macular degeneration (搜索) and diabetic macular edema (搜索).
MT-103 combines Tie2 (搜索) activation with anti-VEGF (搜索) mechanisms to simultaneously induce vascular stabilization and suppress neovascularization, demonstrating superior efficacy compared to existing treatments Eylea and Vabysmo in preclinical studies.
The deal includes $8 million upfront payment, with $987.5 million tied to commercialization milestones representing 91.6% of the total contract value, highlighting the significant commercial potential of this novel therapeutic approach.
Korean biotechnology company Curacle (搜索) and antibody developer Maptics (搜索) have entered into a global licensing agreement with U.S.-based Memento Medicines (搜索) for MT-103, a preclinical-stage bispecific antibody candidate targeting retinal diseases (搜索). The deal, announced on May 10, 2026, is valued at up to $1.08 billion and grants Memento exclusive worldwide rights to develop, manufacture, and commercialize the therapeutic.
Novel Dual-Mechanism Approach
MT-103 represents a significant advancement in retinal disease treatment through its innovative bispecific design. The antibody simultaneously inhibits vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF (搜索)) and activates the Tie2 (搜索) pathway, aiming to improve vascular stability while delivering enhanced therapeutic outcomes for patients with retinal diseases (搜索) including wet age-related macular degeneration (搜索), diabetic macular edema (搜索), and diabetic retinopathy (搜索).
In preclinical studies, MT-103 demonstrated superior efficacy in suppressing vascular leakage and neovascularization compared to established treatments Eylea and Vabysmo. These promising results were presented at ARVO 2026, the world's largest ophthalmology conference, held in Denver.
Substantial Commercial Potential
The licensing agreement structure reflects the significant commercial potential of MT-103. Curacle (搜索) and Maptics (搜索) will receive an upfront payment of $8 million, with development and regulatory milestones totaling $82.25 million. The majority of the deal's value—$987.5 million representing 91.6% of the total contract—is tied to commercialization milestones following regulatory approval.
Under their joint research and development agreement established in July 2024, Curacle (搜索) and Maptics (搜索) will split revenues from this licensing deal on a 50:50 basis. The agreement also includes potential expansion into additional indications beyond retinal diseases (搜索).
Shifting Treatment Paradigm
The retinal disease treatment market has traditionally been dominated by anti-VEGF (搜索) monoclonal antibodies such as Eylea and Lucentis. However, with the recent emergence of bispecific antibody therapy Vabysmo, the treatment paradigm is shifting from monoclonal to bispecific antibodies, positioning MT-103 at the forefront of this therapeutic evolution.
NewCo Model Success
Memento Medicines (搜索) operates under the NewCo model, involving the establishment of a separate legal entity around specific assets with external capital investment for new drug development. This approach has gained attention in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry, with notable success cases including D&D Pharmatech (搜索)'s licensing of an oral obesity treatment to Metsera, which was subsequently acquired by Pfizer.
"Global healthcare investors have joined to develop MT-103, and based on their capital strength and development expertise, development and commercialization will proceed swiftly and systematically," said Curacle (搜索) CEO Yoo Jae-hyun. "We expect this to become another success case of the NewCo model, which has been drawing attention in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry recently."
Memento plans to advance the MT-103 program through global development and commercialization efforts utilizing its NewCo-focused biotechnology platform, with the potential to explore therapeutic applications beyond retinal disease.