AstraZeneca in deal with start-up to fight diabetes
Daily Mail Pharma giant AstraZeneca has signed a huge deal with a UK start-up to create treatments for diabetes and other autoimmune diseases.
The FTSE 100 firm will team up with London-based Quell Therapeutics to collaborate on research and the licensing of any new medicines.
The aim is to develop treatments for Type 1 diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease through the use of genetically engineered 'regulatory T-cells' 'Tregs' for short.
Tregs help to stop the immune system from overreacting in areas of the body affected by a disease. Quell's technology is an extension of therapies which have proven successful in treating cancer.
Astra says it will pay Quell 68m upfront to help fund the research.
The start-up will also be eligible for over 1.6billion in development milestone payments and royalties if any drugs are approved for sale.
