siRNA candidate EMP-012 in phase I for treatment of COPD

FIERCE BIOTECH—GSK’s antibody-drug conjugate strategy may be making more headlines recently, but the British pharma hasn’t forgotten about oligonucleotides.

ENDPOINTS NEWS—GSK said Tuesday it will spend $85 million upfront for an exclusive license to a Phase 1-stage small interfering RNA (siRNA) product being developed by Empirico to treat COPD.

FIRSTWORD PHARMA—Aiming to further boost its oligonucleotide pipeline, GSK inked a licensing deal potentially worth up to $745 million for rights to Empirico’s EMP-012, an siRNA candidate in early clinical development for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).