Roche strikes obesity drug licensing deal worth up to $1.16 bln with Chinese Rona Therapeutics

ZURICH, Oct 13 (Reuters) — Swiss drugmaker Roche entered a licensing agreement worth up to $1.16 billion with Rona Therapeutics for its investigational obesity drug candidate, the Chinese biotech firm said on Tuesday. Roche has been racing to break into the obesity drug market dominated by Eli Lilly and ​Novo Nordisk. With the deal, Rona Therapeutics is set to receive an upfront payment of $100 million and is eligible to receive up to $1.06 billion in potential milestone payments, as well as tiered royalties on global net sales. The investigational RNAi candidate targets activin receptor-like kinase 7 (ALK7), a target for obesity and metabolic diseases. In September, Roche reported positive mid-stage data for its obesity and diabetes candidate enicepatide, which helped patients lose weight and lower blood sugar levels. (Reporting by Marleen Kaesebier Editing by Linda Pasquini) ((marleen.kaesebier@thomsonreuters.com)