Zion Pharma Announces Global Agreement with Roche to Develop and Commercialize a Blood Brain Barrier Penetrant Oral HER2 Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor
9.5.2023 09:00:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
Zion Pharma Limited, a Chinese biotechnology company focused on the development of brain-penetrable compounds, today announced that Roche has acquired the global rights to Zion’s lead program, ZN-A-1041. ZN-A-1041 is an orally administered selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor targeting the Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2). ZN-A-1041 was designed to be blood-brain-barrier-penetrant, and has the potential to treat or prevent the onset of brain metastases in patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer. Up to 50% of patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer will develop brain metastasis during the course of the disease.
"Our agreement with Roche is the culmination of a tremendous team effort to deliver a potentially best-in-class therapy for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer, particularly in the field of brain metastasis by virtue of the high blood-brain barrier permeability of this asset,” stated Zack Cheng, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder of Zion Pharma Limited. “Within five years, we have gone from company formation to first-in-human, to finding a partner in Roche, who has the resources and expertise to bring ZN-A-1041 to patients with few other therapeutic options,” Dr. Cheng continued.
Dr. Ding Zhou, Ph.D., CSO and Co-Founder of Zion Pharma Limited added, “We are pleased that Roche recognizes the potential of our asset for advancing the standard of care with regards to brain penetrable compounds in HER2-positive breast cancer.”
“We are excited to enter this partnership with Zion to further develop this innovative treatment option for people with HER2-positive breast cancer. This partnership builds on Roche’s legacy and expertise in the treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer and supports our pursuit of advancing science by combining external innovation with our in-house capabilities to address areas of high unmet patient needs,” said James Sabry, Global Head of Pharma Partnering.
After a transition period, Roche will be responsible for the further development, manufacturing, and commercialization of ZN-A-1041 globally. Zion will receive up to $70 million USD in upfront and near-term milestone payments pending achievement of certain milestone events. Zion will also be eligible for up to $610 million USD in additional payments following achievement of certain development, regulatory, and sales-based milestone events by ZN-A-1041, as well as tiered royalties on sales.
About ZN-A-1041
ZN-A-1041 is an orally administered selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor targeting the Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2). ZN-A-1041 was designed to be blood-brain-barrier-penetrant. The ongoing Phase 1 trial is being conducted at multiple sites in the U.S. and China. Additional details will be presented at the poster sessions during the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in June 2023.
About Zion Pharma Limited
Zion Pharma is a private, clinical stage biotech company focused on the development of novel, small molecule, anti-tumoral agents. Founded in 2018, the company’s research headquarters are in Suzhou with additional research operations in Shanghai. The company is applying an innovative drug discovery approach, capitalizing on its DMPK expertise, to develop a pipeline of proprietary first-in-class/best-in-class compounds focused on therapeutic targets which drive tumor inhibition, including ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM), Kirsten RAt Sarcoma (KRAS G12D) and SMARCA2 (BRM). Additional information about Zion Pharma is available at www.zionpharma.com.
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/20230508005468/en/
Contact information
For media and partnership inquiries:
J. Michael French
SVP, Corporate Development
michael.french@zionpharma.com
+1.703.338.1972
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
Ant International Secures Payment Institution Licence from the Central Bank of Brazil4.9.2026 17:41:00 EEST | Press release
Ant International, the leading global digital payment, digitisation, and FinAI solutions provider, today announced that it has received a Payment Institution (PI) licence from the Central Bank of Brazil. “With the Central Bank's invaluable support, we are ready to step up more reliable and comprehensive global payment and account services to enterprises, platforms and SMEs in the country's dynamic digital economy, in ever deeper collaboration with its highly developed payments ecosystem and financial services industry,” said Rodrigo Reif, General Manager, Ant International Brazil. Ant International provides cross-border payments and account services, embedded credit and treasury services, and other finAI and blockchain solutions to clients across Asia, Europe and the Americas. The company processes over 20 million transactions daily, connecting 2 billion consumer accounts to 150 million global merchants via its digital payment ecosystem. The PI licence builds on the services Ant Intern
Bending Spoons completes the acquisition of Airtable4.9.2026 15:30:00 EEST | Press release
Bending Spoons S.p.A. (NASDAQ: BSP) has completed the previously announced acquisition of Airtable, the platform used by more than 500,000 organizations to reshape how teams organize data and manage critical workflows. “Airtable continues to grow because customers value its best-in-class flexibility,” said Luca Ferrari, Bending Spoons CEO and co-founder. “Teams can bring all their data, context, and AI agents together in one place, shape their workflows around their specific needs, and progressively expand their use of the platform over time. As we take the reins, our focus will be on sustaining that growth by investing heavily in Airtable’s product, customer support, and go-to-market capabilities.” “I’m proud of what the Airtable team has built and excited to see the business enter this next chapter,” said Howie Liu, co-founder of Airtable. “I’m confident Bending Spoons has the resources and long-term perspective to help Airtable continue delivering exceptional value to its customers
EQT to acquire McGill and Partners, a leading specialty (re)insurance broker for USD 2.0 billion, from Warburg Pincus4.9.2026 14:48:00 EEST | Press release
EQT and McGill and Partners are pleased to announce that EQT X ("EQT") has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in McGill and Partners from Warburg Pincus for USD 2.0bn. Founder and Chief Executive Officer Steve McGill will continue to lead the firm, while Chairman John Lloyd will remain actively involved. Both will remain as significant shareholders alongside the firm’s wider colleague base, while Warburg Pincus will sell its equity stake in full, marking a successful conclusion to the firms’ partnership. EQT will invest behind McGill and Partners’ ambition to drive accelerated organic growth and global expansion by continuing to attract and support specialty broking talent in key markets, invest further in technology and data capabilities, and expand the firm’s digital solutions – all while maintaining its independence, entrepreneurial culture, and colleague alignment that have been central to its success. The firm was founded in May 2019 by industry titan,
A Race Is Never Won Alone: With La Tavolata, Barilla Brings the Paddock Family Together on the Monza Grid4.9.2026 13:18:00 EEST | Press release
On Thursday evening ahead of the Formula 1® Italian Grand Prix, Barilla transformed one of the sport’s fastest and most competitive environments into a place where the Paddock Family took center stage. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260902463001/en/ La Tavolata by Barilla on the starting grid of the Monza circuit. More than two hundred people gathered around a single table: drivers, Team Principals, mechanics, engineers, strategists, safety and medical car drivers, personal trainers, tire technicians. The individuals whose collaboration, precision and trust shape every race, every decision and every performance. A nearly 100-meter table set with plates and pasta. With the first-ever Tavolata organized by Barilla and F1, people from across the Formula 1® ecosystem – including VCARB driver Yuki Tsunoda and his Race Engineer Alexandre Iliopoulos – celebrated the same principle that defines racing: exceptional pe
Aqara Showcases The New Smart Lighting Series and Immersive Smart Home Experience at IFA 20264.9.2026 12:30:00 EEST | Press release
Aqara, a global leader in IoT, today announced a new lineup of smart lighting products and a global community platform for smart space creators, at IFA 2026 in Berlin. The announcements reflect Aqara's ongoing vision for AI-driven spatial intelligence — spaces that understand their users and adapt to how people actually live in them. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260904365343/en/ Aqara Showcases The New Smart Lighting Series and Immersive Smart Home Experience at IFA 2026 The new lighting series — spanning indoor and outdoor use — integrates seamlessly with Aqara's existing ecosystem of sensors, switches, and hubs, bringing complete whole-space lighting scenarios and automated controls to life. The new Aqara products showcased include the Floor Lamp T1, LED Downlight T2, LED Strip T2, Outdoor String Lights H1, and Permanent Outdoor Lights H1. In addition, the company will present Aqara Builder, a platform fo
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