Boehringer Ingelheim Partners with Enleofen to Develop First-in-Class Anti-IL-11 Therapies for a Range of Fibrotic Diseases
9.1.2020 15:00:00 EET | Business Wire | Press release
Boehringer Ingelheim and Enleofen Bio Pte. Ltd. (Enleofen) announced today the acquisition of worldwide exclusive rights to Enleofen’s preclinical interleukin-11 (IL-11) platform by Boehringer Ingelheim to develop first-in-class therapies across a broad range of fibro-inflammatory diseases. The new partnership combines Boehringer Ingelheim’s leading expertise and comprehensive pipeline in fibrotic diseases with Enleofen’s world-leading expertise in IL-11 biology and the company’s extensive range of therapeutic antibodies targeting this pathway.
“The impressive preclinical studies at Enleofen have revealed the potential of IL-11 blockade to treat a broad range of diseases,” said Clive R. Wood, Ph.D., Corporate Senior Vice President and Global Head of Discovery Research at Boehringer Ingelheim. “We are excited to have these monoclonal antibodies in our pipeline and have the opportunity to accelerate their path to many patients whose needs are not met by current treatments.”
IL-11 is a cytokine, a protein certain cells of the body use to communicate, and plays a key role in fibro-inflammatory conditions. Blocking IL-11 action has been shown to inhibit disease across many organs (liver, lung, kidney, retina, bowel, heart and skin). In preclinical studies, antibody-based IL-11 antagonists were able to prevent and reverse inflammation and fibrosis, and restore organ function.
Enleofen is a spin out company from the National Heart Centre Singapore (NHCS) at SingHealth and Duke-NUS Medical School under the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre (AMC), Singapore and exclusively licensed a suite of patents and number of antibody products when it was founded in 2017, from the AMC. Subsequent to this, Enleofen has built an extensive anti-IL-11 antibody platform and advanced its drug development programs towards the clinic. Boehringer Ingelheim will now develop this platform further and plans to work jointly with scientists at the AMC to accelerate the platform into clinical development. The initial focus will be on novel therapies for patients with NASH and ILDs, two of Boehringer Ingelheim’s core disease focus areas, with a potential to expand into further fibro-inflammatory conditions based on IL-11’s central role in disease.
“Enleofen is very excited to engage Boehringer Ingelheim, a leader in anti-fibrotic therapy R&D to develop further anti-IL-11 therapies to begin to address the unmet medical needs of patients worldwide,” said Prof Stuart Cook, Director and co-founder of Enleofen. “The preclinical data across a range of conditions are unprecedented and this new approach of targeting IL-11 could be a game changer”.
The acquisition of the IL-11 program from Enleofen strengthens Boehringer Ingelheim’s pipeline portfolio, which combines approaches that are effective across multiple fibrotic diseases with disease-specific approaches to achieve greater therapeutic effect and builds on the experience gained with nintedanib in fibrotic lung diseases. Boehringer Ingelheim will be solely responsible for the clinical, regulatory and commercial development of the licensed therapies. Under the terms of the agreement, Enleofen may receive earn out payments in excess of one billion USD per product in upfront and success-based development and commercialization milestones.
For references and notes to editors, please visit:
http://www.boehringer-ingelheim.com/press-release/fibrotic-diseases-partnership-enleofen
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200109005346/en/
Contact information
Boehringer Ingelheim
Dr. Reinhard Malin
Head of Communications Innovation Unit
Boehringer Ingelheim Corporate Center GmbH
Media + PR
P: +49 6132 77-90815
reinhard.malin@boehringer-ingelheim.com
Linda Ruckel
Associate Director, Media and Corporate Reputation
Boehringer Ingelheim U.S.
Media + PR
P: + 203-791-6672
linda.ruckel@boehringer-ingelheim.com
Enleofen
Charu Srivastava
charu@redhill.asia
+65 91810614
Mariyam Haider
mariyam@redhill.asia
+65 86056752
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
AI Meets Traditional Culture: Huangshan Captures Widespread Attention at ITB Berlin7.3.2026 11:22:00 EET | Press release
Huangshan, one of China’s most iconic scenic destinations, drew significant attention at this year’s ITB by presenting a compelling fusion of traditional Chinese culture and cutting-edge artificial intelligence under the slogan “The world of Huangshan is for the world.” This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260307909978/en/ International visitor admires Huangshan cultural and creative exhibits at the Huangshan stand during ITB Berlin. Located in eastern China’s Anhui Province, Huangshan is famed for its “Five Natural Wonders” — fantastic pines, grotesque rocks, sea of clouds, hot spring and winter snow. The mountain is widely regarded as one of China’s greatest mountain landscapes. It is also a rare natural heritage site that simultaneously holds multiple international designations, including UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage status, a UNESCO Global Geopark and a World Biosphere Reserve. At ITB, the Huangsh
Incyte Announces the European Commission Approval of Zynyz ® (retifanlimab) for the First-Line Treatment of Advanced Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Anal Canal (SCAC)6.3.2026 23:42:00 EET | Press release
Incyte (Nasdaq:INCY) today announced that the European Commission (EC) has approved Zynyz® (retifanlimab) in combination with carboplatin and paclitaxel (platinum-based chemotherapy) for the first-line treatment of adult patients with metastatic or with inoperable locally recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the anal canal (SCAC). “The EC approval of Zynyz marks an important step forward for patients with advanced SCAC, a rare cancer for which meaningful treatment advances have not occurred in several decades,” said Bill Meury, President and Chief Executive Officer, Incyte. “As the first PD-1 immunotherapy approved in Europe in combination with platinum-based chemotherapy in the first-line setting, Zynyz helps expand the standard-of-care options available to clinicians and underscores our commitment to delivering innovative medicines that can have an impact for patients.” The EC decision follows the January 2026 positive opinion received from the European Medicines Agency’s Committee f
Dfns Launches Payouts6.3.2026 22:27:00 EET | Press release
Dfns today announced the launch of Payouts, a new API enabling institutions to convert stablecoins to fiat and route payouts across multiple bank accounts while keeping wallet-level governance and controls in place. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260305327930/en/ Convert stablecoins to fiat and settle payouts to bank accounts in 94 countries, today. Solving the problem of single-rail off-ramps Today, most fintechs and institutions still hard-wire a single payout provider into their stack, or rely on vertically integrated models that bundle routing, pricing, custody, and settlement together. That approach may be convenient early on, but it creates structural problems at scale: weak price discovery because there is no competitive pressure on margins, limited auditability because routing decisions are opaque, and operational fragility because a single provider degradation in any corridor requires architectural i
Klarna Group Plc Clarifies Mechanics of March 9 Lock-Up Expiration6.3.2026 21:23:00 EET | Press release
Klarna Group plc (NYSE: KLAR) today issues the following clarification to ensure investors and market participants have accurate information regarding the mechanics of its lock-up expiration on March 9, 2026, the processes required before pre-IPO shares can be traded on the NYSE, and the prior liquidity opportunities already available to shareholders. This release contains only factual descriptions of the Company's share structure and applicable processes. It does not constitute guidance or a projection of any kind regarding future trading volumes, share price, or the intentions of any shareholder and speaks only as of the date of this press release. 1. 335 million locked-up shares — but two different categories Of the 378 million total ordinary shares outstanding, approximately 335 million are subject to lock-up restrictions expiring March 9, 2026. However, these shares fall into two distinct categories governed by separate sets of regulations. A. 159 million shares (48% of locked-up
Lone Star Funds Announces Agreement to Acquire the Capsules & Health Ingredients Division of Lonza Group AG6.3.2026 19:30:00 EET | Press release
Lone Star Funds (“Lone Star”) today announced that an affiliate of Lone Star Fund XII, L.P. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the Capsules & Health Ingredients (“CHI”) division of Lonza Group AG. As part of the transaction, Lonza will retain a 40% equity position in the business. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, CHI operates globally across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. The business comprises three segments: Hard Empty Capsules: leading global manufacturer of gelatin and plant-based capsules offering a broad range of innovative solutions for pharmaceutical and nutraceutical customers. Dosage Form Solutions: end-to-end development and manufacturing platform serving nutraceutical and pharmaceutical customers. Health Ingredients: provider of branded, science-backed nutrition ingredients serving joint health, energy and active lifestyle markets. Lone Star believes CHI is a high-quality, globally recognized platform with strong technical capabilities, different
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom