Sideris Pharmaceuticals has entered into an agreement with Novartis Pharmaceuticals whereby Novartis has been granted an exclusive right to acquire Sideris and its lead asset, the iron-chelating candidate SP-420. Including upfront, acquisition and milestone payments, the agreement with Novartis could reach up to $300 million.

Sideris also completed a $32 million Series A equity financing led by MPM Capital. Ansbert Gadicke, M.D., and Kazumi Shiosaki, Ph.D., both managing directors of MPM Capital, and Doug Reed, M.D., general partner of Hatteras Venture Partners, have joined the Sideris board of directors.

"We believe that SP-420 has the potential to be the best-in-class therapeutic approach for the treatment of transfusion related iron overload," said Thomas Neenan, Ph.D., Sideris founder and chief technology officer.

The combination of the Novartis agreement and the Series A financing will allow Sideris to advance the SP-420 program through a large phase II clinical study in transfusion-related iron overload.

“Thanks to this investment, this drug candidate will have a faster path to clinical trials,” said David L. Day, University of Florida Office of Technology licensing director. “This is part of our mission to move UF inventors’ technologies into the market, where they improve patients’ quality of life and make the world a better place.”