Company acquires exclusive global rights of the novel lipopeptide BRII-693 for the difficult to treat MDR/XDR gram-negative bacterial infections

Company returns Greater China rights to Qpex Biopharma of beta-lactamase inhibitor QPX7728-based products

  Brii Biosciences Limited ("Brii Bio," "we," or the "Company", stock code: 2137.HK), a biotechnology company developing therapies to improve patient health and choice across diseases with high unmet needs,  announced that it entered into definitive agreements with Qpex Biopharma ("Qpex") and third parties in connection with the acquisition of Qpex by Shionogi.

Under the terms of the agreement, Brii Bio will acquire exclusive global rights for the development and commercialization of BRII-693 (also known as QPX9003) to expand from its existing rights in Greater China. All existing cost-share, milestone and royalty payments associated with BRII-693 to Qpex are eliminated. The Company will return its exclusive rights to QPX7728-based products BRII-636 and BRII-672 in Greater China to Qpex and Brii will no longer be responsible for cost-share, milestone and royalty payments to Qpex associated with these products.

In association with the return of QPX7728-based program rights to Qpex, Qpex will complete a merger through acquisition by Shionogi. Brii Bio will receive approximately $24 million upon closing of the acquisition as a Qpex shareholder and the return of the QPX7728 product rights, with potential contingency payments for future milestone events in the US.

BRII-693 is a novel synthetic lipopeptide in development for the treatment of critically ill patients with MDR/XDR gram-negative bacterial infections, especially carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In October 2019, Brii Bio entered into a licensing agreement with Qpex to develop and commercialize BRII-693 and the QPX7728-based products in Greater China.

"With the demonstrated antibacterial mechanism and improved safety profile, BRII-693 has the potential to be the safest and most effective polymyxin for the treatment of critically ill patients with gram-negative bacterial infections," said Zhi Hong, Ph.D., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Brii Bio, "Given the microbiological and clinical profile of BRII-693, we are very excited about this opportunity to prioritize and focus on the global development of this agent."

In April 2023, Brii Bio submitted a pre-IND to the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for the development of BRII-693 (QPX9003) in China.