• Shares up over 47% in premarket trading
• vTv will receive upfront payment and is eligible for future milestones and royalties
• Partner intends to develop COPD treatment

vTv Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:VTVT) announced on that vTv Therapeutics LLC has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Newsoara Biopharma Co., Ltd. for rights to develop and commercialize vTv Therapeutics’ PDE4 Inhibitor program in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and other Pacific Rim countries covering Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Brunei and South Korea.

Under the terms of the agreement, vTv Therapeutics will receive an upfront payment and will be eligible to receive future development and commercialization milestones as well as royalties on sales of approved products. Newsoara will develop HPP737 in the covered territories for respiratory and other inflammatory diseases.
HPP737, a selective phosphodiesterase type 4 (PDE4) inhibitor, has shown therapeutic activity in several animal models of inflammation. In phase 1 studies, HPP737 was well tolerated with little or no gastrointestinal distress. Preclinical and clinical data suggest that HPP737 may be able to expand the therapeutic use for this target, which has been limited by the side-effects of currently-available PDE4 inhibitors.

“We are excited to partner with Newsoara, an innovative biotechnology company in China with an outstanding experienced management team, led by Dr. Benny Li, to develop and commercialize our PDE4 program in the licensed Asian countries,” stated Steve Holcombe, chief executive officer of vTv Therapeutics. “This represents our second partnership to introduce potential new therapies into the China market which speaks to the importance of that market.”

“With this partnership, we hope to develop a new treatment for inflammatory diseases, including COPD, which is one of the major health care burdens in China, with over eight percent of the country’s adult population suffering from the disease and limited safe and effective treatment options available,” said Dr. Li, CEO of Newsoara.

As of this writing vTv shares are up over 47% in premarket trading.