July 8 (Reuters) – Hong Kong-listed Sino Biopharmaceutical said on Wednesday it has granted AstraZeneca the rights to develop a drug designed to treat chronic respiratory diseases outside China for total payments of up to $1.9 billion.
• Under the deal, AstraZeneca gets an exclusive license to develop, manufacture and commercialize the drug — TQC3721 — outside China, with additional exclusive global rights for certain future development programs.
• Designed to open airways and fight inflammation at the same time, TQC3721 aims to improve lung function and reduce severe flare-ups for patients with long-term respiratory conditions, Sino Biopharmaceutical said.
• The Hong Kong-listed firm is eligible to receive an upfront payment of $200 million, with additional development and other milestone payments.
(Reporting by Sneha Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)
