Scribe Enters Collaboration with Lilly’s Prevail to Accelerate In Vivo CRISPR-based Therapies for Neurological and Neuromuscular Diseases

Rare Daily Staff

Scribe Therapeutics said it entered a strategic collaboration worth up to $1.5 billion with Eli Lilly’s Prevail Therapeutics that provides exclusive rights to Scribe’s CRISPR X-Editing technologies for the development of in vivo therapies directed to specified targets known to cause serious neurological and neuromuscular diseases.

“With the compelling in vivo proof-of-principle data we have generated in multiple disease areas, Scribe has validated our X-Editing technologies for industry-leading editing activity, specificity and deliverability,” said Benjamin Oakes, CEO of Scribe. “Our goal now is to more broadly enable therapies to help people living with these conditions.”

Scribe’s platform technology enables it to transform bacterial immune systems into therapeutically relevant genome editing technologies that target the specific needs of patients. The company’s tools for in vivo genome editing directly modify genes within the body that the company said offers several key benefits in safety, efficacy, and delivery over existing methods.

Under the terms of the agreement, Scribe will receive $75 million consisting of an upfront payment and equity investment in the form of a convertible note and is eligible to receive more than $1.5 billion in development and commercial milestone payments. In addition, Prevail will pay research funding and tiered royalties ranging into the low double-digits on net future sales. Scribe also has the right to opt-in to co-fund and share profits in the United States on one collaboration program.

Photo: Benjamin Oakes, CEO of Scribe