Novaremed Enters Into an Exclusive Option and License Agreement With NeuroFront for the Non-opioid Neuropathic Pain Treatment, NRD.E1, for Greater China and Singapore
21.7.2022 10:58:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
Novaremed AG and NeuroFront Therapeutics (Hong Kong) Limited jointly announce the signing of an exclusive collaboration and commercialization agreement for Novaremed’s innovative non-opioid investigational drug, NRD.E1, being developed for the treatment of diabetes-related neuropathic pain and other neuropathic pain indications. Under the terms of the agreement, Novaremed is eligible to receive from NeuroFront over USD 130 million in option and exercise fees as well as development, regulatory and sales milestone payments plus royalties on net sales.
Under the terms of the agreement, Novaremed will grant NeuroFront an exclusive option to obtain exclusive development, commercialization and manufacturing rights to NRD.E1, Novaremed’s first-in-class, innovative non-opioid investigational drug candidate for the treatment of neuropathic pain. The agreement allows NeuroFront to develop and commercialize NRD.E1 as treatment of painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy (PDPN) and any other neuropathic pain indications in the Greater China territory (including Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) and Singapore.
NeuroFront has the right to exercise its license option at its discretion, but no later than upon completion of the Phase 2b trial of NRD.E1 in PDPN, which will start patient enrollment in coming weeks.
In case NeuroFront successfully develops and registers NRD.E1 in additional neuropathic pain indications in the licensed territory, Novaremed is also eligible to receive additional development and regulatory milestone payments for each additional indication.
“We are very delighted collaborating with NeuroFront to advance our non-opioid neuropathic pain treatment for patients suffering from PDPN and other neuropathic pain indications in China. Currently, approved medications for PDPN provide inadequate pain relief and are associated with many intolerable side effects. Based on both preclinical and clinical data, we believe NRD.E1 has the potential to offer unique benefits and revolutionize the way PDPN is treated,” said Isaac Kobrin, MD, Executive Chairman of Novaremed. “NeuroFront’s development and commercial expertise and its focus on innovative CNS drugs is complementary to our expertise and an ideal fit for Novaremed.”
“There are up to 19 million patients suffering from PDPN in China, but no new innovative drug has been introduced in the market for more than 15 years. There exists a significant unmet medical need and hence a great opportunity for NRD.E1, a first-in-class, novel treatment that has already demonstrated clinical effectiveness in a Phase 2a clinical trial and subsequently received US FDA Fast Track Designation and NIH sponsorship for its Phase 2b trial,” said June Yan, CEO of NeuroFront. “NeuroFront is very excited to partner with Novaremed to change the lives of many PDPN patients in Greater China and Singapore.”
This partnership and the transaction were facilitated with the assistance of Cukierman and Company Investment House.
About NRD.E1 and the treatment of chronic pain
NRD.E1 is an orally active small molecule with a novel mechanism of action by modulating Lyn kinase and has patent protection until 2040. NRD.E1 is Novaremed’s lead drug candidate currently being developed to treat painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy (PDPN). Novaremed successfully completed three Phase 1 studies [1] and one double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2a dose-finding proof-of-concept study [2] in which NRD.E1 showed a clinically relevant reduction in patient-reported pain (measured as an improvement in mean neuropathic pain score) and was very well tolerated at all doses tested.
On the basis of these results, NRD.E1 has been granted Fast Track Designation by the US FDA and was selected by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the US as the only oral agent to be included in the NIH-HEAL (Help End Long-term Addiction) program. The NIH will sponsor and execute a 12-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2b study in patients with moderate to severe PDPN in the US. Recruitment into this clinical trial will start in coming weeks.
About NeuroFront
NeuroFront is a China-based clinical stage neuroscience biotech company with a focus on developing and commercializing innovative neuroscience therapies to address unmet needs and improve patients' lives in China and Asia. NeuroFront was established by top-tier life sciences investors, including Nan Fung Life Sciences and Pivotal bioVenture Partners China, and is led by an elite team of neuroscience industry veterans with substantial and compelling expertise in China and globally in both R&D and the commercialization of CNS products. NeuroFront is building a portfolio of innovative, transformative CNS therapies that treat migraine, painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy, depression, ADHD, and other CNS diseases with high unmet medical needs. For more information: www.neurofrontrx.com.
About Novaremed
Novaremed AG, a privately held clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, is developing a pipeline of innovative medications for chronic pain management to address the high unmet medical need for better pain relief and as an alternative to opioids. Its lead product is NRD.E1, an orally active non-opioid small molecule with a novel mechanism of action, has FDA Fast Track Designation and IND-approval to proceed with a Phase 2b clinical trial for the treatment of painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy (PDPN). The earlier stage pipeline addressing chronic neuropathic pain includes the development candidates MP-101 (Phase 2 stage), and MP-103 (preclinical stage), targeting the unmet medical need of prevention and treatment of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). Novaremed Ltd (Israel) and Metys Pharmaceuticals AG (Switzerland) are fully owned subsidiaries of Novaremed AG, domiciled in Basel (Switzerland). For more information: www.novaremed.com.
References
[1] Tiecke E., Rainisio M., Guentert T., Müller S., Hochman L., Kaplan E., Mangialaio S. (2022). First-in-human single-ascending-dose, multiple-dose and food interaction studies of NRD.E1, an innovative non-opioid therapy for painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy. Clinical Pharmacology in Drug Development (CPDD). (https://accp1.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cpdd.1103)
[2] Tiecke E., Rainisio M., Eisenberg E., Wainstein J., Kaplan E., Silverberg M., Hochman L., Mangialaio S. (2022). NRD.E1, an innovative non-opioid therapy for painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy – a randomized proof of concept study. European Journal of Pain. (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ejp.1989)
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/20220721005391/en/
Contact information
Contact for Novaremed
Mark Altmeyer, Executive Member of the Board
mark.altmeyer@novaremed.com
Contact for NeuroFront
Bin Yao, VP of Operations and Commercialization
bin.yao@neurofrontrx.com
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
Klarna to Power Apple Upgrade, a New Hardware Leasing Program Offered by Apple28.7.2026 15:15:00 EEST | Press release
Klarna, the global digital bank and flexible payments provider, today announced it would be the leasing provider behind the Apple Upgrade program, a new hardware leasing option available from Apple in the United States. Lease Apple hardware for low monthly payments Provided by Klarna, Apple Upgrade offers customers a new way to pay for eligible iPhone, Mac, iPad and Apple Watch. Customers can select from 12- and 24-month leasing options for iPhone and Apple Watch, and 24- and 36-month leasing options for Mac and iPad. In addition, when customers first enroll in Apple Upgrade, they can trade in an existing device to further lower their monthly payments during their initial lease term. The freedom to upgrade, return, or buy When the lease ends, customers choose what suits them: upgrade to the latest model1, purchase their device, or return it. A seamless checkout, and easy to manage payments Apple and Klarna have built an easy and seamless checkout experience which shows customers exactl
Third-Party EPDs Confirm C-Crete Cement Cuts Embodied Carbon by up to 95% — and It’s Already Being Poured Commercially28.7.2026 15:05:00 EEST | Press release
C-Crete Technologies has published two Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) verifying that its cements cut embodied carbon by up to 95% versus conventional portland cement. C-Crete’s technology converts a broad range of natural rocks and industrial by-products into cementitious binders with no clinker and no kiln, so production is inherently decentralized — and it is already being poured in commercial concrete today. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260728132467/en/ Representative C-Crete's project portfolio. More than 4000 tons of C-Crete's ultra-low carbon concrete have been poured in different cities since 2023. C-Crete's oldest pour is more than 3 years old, with no sign of degradation or cracking. Verified performance, not projections C-Crete’s clinker-free Ultra Low Carbon Cement (NRMCA EPD 20353) reports a global warming potential of just 43.1 kg CO2-eq per metric ton — roughly 95% below the 919 kg
Nine in 10 LPs More Likely to Commit to Funds Using Leverage When Disclosure is Clear28.7.2026 15:00:00 EEST | Press release
Fund-level leverage and liquidity tools have moved from specialist financing techniques to mainstream private capital infrastructure, according to new research from CSC, the leading provider of global business administration and compliance solutions. The findings show that limited partners (LPs) are increasingly open to the use of these tools when disclosure is clear, but general partners (GPs) face growing pressure to prove that the operating model behind them is controlled, transparent, and investor-ready. CSC¹ surveyed 300 GPs and 200 LPs across North America, Europe, the U.K., and Asia Pacific. The report, Future Private Capital CFO 2026: How CFOs are becoming the architects of operational trust, examines how fund finance, liquidity management, reporting, outsourcing, cybersecurity, and AI governance are reshaping the role of the private capital CFO. The findings show the market has moved beyond a simple debate about whether fund-level leverage should be used. Instead, LP focus is
Omilia Appoints David Ogden as VP of Revenue Operations28.7.2026 15:00:00 EEST | Press release
Omilia, a global leader in Self-Learning Agentic CX, today announced the appointment of Dave Ogden as Vice President of Revenue Operations. Ogden will be responsible for scaling Omilia’s global revenue operations function spanning sales operations, forecasting, and commercial execution as the company accelerates growth across its key markets. In this role, Ogden will design and operate the revenue infrastructure that connects sales, marketing, and customer success, including forecasting, pipeline management, and deal desk operations. He joins as Omilia expands its direct and partner-led go-to-market across the US, Europe, Latin America and Australia, and will play a central role in ensuring that growth scales in a disciplined, data-driven way. Ogden brings more than 15 years of enterprise SaaS revenue and commercial operations experience. He spent nine years at Five9, progressing through a series of senior roles including VP of Strategy, Planning and Growth, where he led the build-out
B-Secur and CSEM Partner to Bring Clinically-Validated Heart Monitoring to Health Wearables28.7.2026 15:00:00 EEST | Press release
CSEM, the Swiss-based technology innovation centre, and B-Secur, a leader in advanced biosensing technology, today announced a partnership to bring clinically-validated heart monitoring capability to health wearables. The collaboration pairs CSEM's 25+ years of leadership in PPG-based vital signs monitoring with B-Secur's multiple FDA-cleared ECG algorithms and analytics, offering device manufacturers and digital health companies a route to integrating more accurate, market-ready heart monitoring into their products — for applications including remote patient monitoring, cardiovascular health, and chronic disease management. “By combining CSEM’s expertise in photoplethysmography-based vital signs monitoring with B-Secur’s ECG analytics, we are enabling a new class of multimodal sensing solutions that deliver clinically relevant insights. This partnership reflects our commitment to translating cutting-edge sensing and algorithm technologies into real-world healthcare applications.” Jose
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