NEW YORK – Junshi Biosciences and Impact Therapeutics said on Thursday that they are launching a joint venture to research, develop, and commercialize the PARP inhibitor senaparib (IMP4297) in China.
Under the agreement, both companies will co-develop and conduct clinical trials for senaparib across multiple cancer indications. Junshi Biosciences will contribute up to RMB 300 million ($43.4 million) in cash, and Impact Therapeutics will supply senaparib in Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau.
Senaparib was developed by Impact and is currently being studied in multiple Phase I and Phase II trials in various settings. The drug has been tested in over 100 patients with advanced solid tumors in multiple clinical trials in China and Australia. A Phase II trial in China evaluating senaparib monotherapy in BRCA 1/2-mutated, previously treated ovarian cancer patients is currently recruiting patients.Â
Preliminary analysis from a Phase I trial of senaparib found that the drug shrank tumors in three out of four BRCA-positive, platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer patients. Further, all four patients had their disease controlled after treatment.Â
In the study, the majority of treatment-related adverse events reported were grade 1 or 2. Five patients experienced a grade 3 adverse event including anemia, vomiting, thrombocytopenia, and elevated AST, and only one patient had a dose reduction due to grade 3 thrombocytopenia.
"Data showed that senaparib has superior safety and has the potential to be the best in class, which means that [the drug] has great potential as a monotherapy as well as in combination with other agents," Junshi CEO Ning Li said in a statement.