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
AIT Worldwide Logistics Announces Strategic Partnership With Greenbriar Equity Group16.2.2026 16:03:00 EET | Press release
Supply chain solutions leader AIT Worldwide Logistics (“AIT”) has entered into a definitive agreement to partner with Greenbriar Equity Group, L.P. (“Greenbriar”) in support of the global freight forwarder’s next chapter of growth. Financial terms of the private transaction were not disclosed. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260216984391/en/ AIT Worldwide Logistics' strategic partnership with Greenbriar Equity Group represents one of the largest private acquisitions ever in the global freight forwarding sector. The deal marks the culmination of five successful years with The Jordan Company, L.P. (“TJC”). TJC, alongside key members of AIT’s executive leadership team, will remain invested in the company. Over the course of the company’s relationship with TJC, AIT has dramatically expanded its global footprint, acquired 14 businesses, and increased its gross revenue by more than 300%. The agreement with Greenbria
Transition Industries and Mexico’s CFEnergía Sign Natural Gas Supply Contract Enabling Construction of Pacifico Mexinol, the World’s Largest Ultra-Low Carbon Methanol Plant16.2.2026 15:00:00 EET | Press release
Transition Industries LLC, a developer of world-scale, net-zero carbon emissions methanol and hydrogen projects, and CFEnergía, a subsidiary of Mexico’s Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), announced the signing of a long-term firm natural gas supply contract for the Pacifico Mexinol (“Mexinol”) project, located near Topolobampo, Sinaloa. Under this agreement, CFEnergía will supply approximately 160 million cubic feet per day (MMcfd) of natural gas over the long term, ensuring a critical input for Mexinol’s production of ultra-low carbon methanol. The supply will be provided by CFEnergía at market prices and will optimize the use of existing infrastructure. CFEnergía will source the natural gas from the USA. The agreement is subject to customary conditions. The contract signing with CFEnergía represents the final outstanding commercial milestone, enabling the start of the construction phase, and confirming the timeline for Mexinol’s operational readiness in late 2029 to early 2030. Wh
Compass Pathways to Announce New Clinical Data from Two Ongoing Phase 3 Trials16.2.2026 15:00:00 EET | Press release
Compass Pathways plc (Nasdaq: CMPS), a biotechnology company dedicated to accelerating patient access to evidence-based innovation, announced that tomorrow it will report new clinical data from two ongoing Phase 3 trials evaluating COMP360, a synthetic, proprietary formulation of psilocybin, for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The company will be disclosing new clinical data from Part A and Part B from COMP005 and Part A from COMP006. The results are scheduled for release on February 17th at 6:30 am ET, followed by a webinar hosted by Compass management at 8:00 am ET. Live Webcast Compass management will host a live audio webcast on February 17th at 8:00 am ET. The webcast will be accessible at this link: https://lifescievents.com/event/hz02j0rpw/ A replay of the webcast will be accessible for 30 days following the event. About Compass Pathways Compass Pathways plc (Nasdaq: CMPS) is a biotechnology company dedicated to accelerating patient access to evidence-based innovation in m
K2 Partnering Solutions Appoints Srinivas Rao as Chief Executive Officer16.2.2026 11:00:00 EET | Press release
K2 Partnering Solutions, a global leader in consultative technology and talent solutions, today announced the appointment of Srinivas Rao as Chief Executive Officer. Srinivas is a seasoned global executive with more than 28 years of experience driving value creation, scalable growth, and operational transformation across digital, consulting, IT services, and business services. He brings deep expertise in leading complex, multi-market organisations and has successfully scaled $800M+ P&Ls, working closely with boards, sponsors, and executive leadership teams across the USA, UK, Europe, the Middle East, and APAC. Most recently, Srinivas served as Chief Business Officer and a member of the Executive Council at LTIMindtree, where he was accountable for growth acceleration, market expansion, strategic customer relationships, and operating performance across a highly complex regional footprint. During his tenure, he played a pivotal role in strengthening go-to-market execution, driving margin
Klarna Launches on Google Pay in the UK16.2.2026 10:00:00 EET | Press release
Klarna, the global digital bank and flexible payments provider, is now available on Google Pay in the UK. Google Pay users in the U.K. can choose Klarna’s interest-free payment options at checkout. Raji Behal, Head of Western and Southern Europe, UK & Ireland at Klarna, said, “We’re really excited to bring Klarna’s fair, flexible and interest-free payment options to Google Pay users. This is a big moment for us and a major step towards our goal of being available at every checkout, everywhere. Together with Google, we’re making it easier than ever for millions of shoppers to choose Klarna and pay in a smarter, more transparent way — all from their phone.” Lisa Yokoyama, Director of Product Management at Google Paysaid: "Expanding our collaboration with Klarna to the U.K. underscores our goal to empower more people with the flexibility to pay how they choose. With people shopping on Google over a billion times a day, this broader footprint provides even more checkout options to help bus
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