Boehringer Ingelheim and CDR-Life Inc. have announced a new global licensing agreement to develop CDR-Life’s antibody-based molecule CDR111 for autoimmune diseases.

CDR111 is a trispecific M-gager, an antibody-based T-cell engager designed to selectively target and deplete B cells, with the goal of achieving immune system reset. Dysregulated B cells play a central role in driving many autoimmune and inflammatory conditions such as lupus, multiple sclerosis and certain forms of arthritis. Therefore, an approach that can deeply deplete these cells could have broad and far-reaching potential across multiple indications.

Under the terms of the agreement, CDR-Life is eligible for up to a total of $570 million in payments including $48 million in upfront and near-term payments, plus tiered royalties on future sales. The agreement builds on the companies’ successful collaboration on an investigational antibody fragment.

“Our expanded collaboration with Boehringer underscores the growing recognition of our platform’s ability to design high quality biologics that may translate into meaningful therapeutic advances,” said Christian Leisner, PhD, CEO of CDR-Life. “This new agreement further validates the versatility of our T-cell engager technology, and we are excited to see Boehringer advance CDR111 toward the clinic.”

“We are excited to expand upon our work with CDR-Life and apply their trispecific M-gager approach to autoimmune and inflammatory diseases with high unmet need, further broadening our differentiated pipeline,” said Carine Boustany, U.S. Innovation Unit Site Head and Global Head of Immunology and Respiratory Diseases at Boehringer Ingelheim. “We see strong potential for CDR111 to demonstrate a deep and durable immune reset that may deliver transformative options for patients living with serious autoimmune disease.”