Bildnachweis: Origenis GmbH.

Together with the investor Kleiner Perkins, Origenis GmbH founded the company Neuron23 in the US in 2018. How did this come about and how does Origenis benefit from it? And is this type of spin-off a model that could be repeated? We ­spoke to Origenis CEO Dr Michael Thormann about this.

 

Plattform Life Sciences: Dr Thormann, could you briefly describe your business model at Origenis?

Dr Thormann: We are very good at making optimized, novel small molecules: potent, selective, shaped for the targeted therapeutic area and thus developable. How­ever, we do not develop these clinically. We would need larger amounts of capital for that, which exceed our private investors’ possibilities. We, therefore, cannot utilize what our technology platform could deliver with own efforts. To commer­cialize the fruits of our platform, we collaborate with selected partners, for example with companies with target identification and validation platforms, or build joint ventures.

And you also rely on spin-offs, such as Neuron23 …

Yes, at that time, the further development of Origenis drug candidates required a strong investment. Searching for investors in 2018, especially in the field of CNS and neurodegeneration, several US investors were highly interested. They were keen on advanced small molecule programs in the field of neurodegeneration to fill or even overcome the stall in the clinical development of the antibodies in big pharma pipelines. The investment needs in this area to become a clinical company were huge – therefore we decided not to try to reposition Origenis, but to build a NewCo which is totally dedicated to neurodegeneration. US investors were, and are still, very open to this “company build­ing” scenario. So, we put together US money and a US team that would take on the ­assets of interest, resulting in the formation of Neuron23. We licensed our neurodegeneration programs to the newly founded start-up and generated advanced follow-up candidates in the first couple years. In return, we received substantial research funding from Neuron23. The new company was designed such that it would develop independently of Origenis. This model works. Neuron23 has built up a team of ­experts in the field and has now advanced two of the Origenis substances for further development in clinical trials. Neuron23 has already received over USD 200 million and, if the market is opening up, will probably heading for an IPO.

Is this not Origenis creating its own competition?

Quite the opposite. We still hold a substan­tial stake in Neuron23. With an IPO, we will participate and have our return on ­investment – many years before the actual drugs come onto the market or milestones and royalties would come in a deal with big pharma.

So, a model that can be multiplied?

Yes, we are already working on the next spin-off like Neuron23. This also opens up new opportunities for investors. The idea is that we provide our development candidate and backups with data package and strong IP position, and then set up a vehicle with professional biotech investors who take care of their clinical development and commercialization. Investors can there­fore invest in a development candidate, but do not have to understand and ­finance five other assets, the entire patent portfolio, our technology platform or our company history. In this respect, we have adapted our business model to the exist­ing investment market.

In other words, Origenis is becoming a planet that is constantly equipping itself with new satellites?

The song “Satellite” by Lena Meyer-Landrut says, “I saved the best I have for you”. This line characterizes our business model very well: we give the newly founded companies the best we have created for further development.

Dr Michael Thormann, is co-founder, CEO and CSO of Origenis GmbH and has more than 20 years of Biotech experience in ­chemical AI technology, drug research and development. Copyright: Origenis GmbH
Dr Michael Thormann, is co-founder, CEO and CSO of Origenis GmbH and has more than 20 years of Biotech experience in ­chemical AI technology, drug research and development. Copyright: Origenis GmbH

Doesn’t this ultimately mean that Origenis is being sold out?

No, because our platform yields new drug candidates available for the next spin-off. Ultimately, we are developing our own ­planets, with our own ecosystem, but in close exchange with our home planet. In less flowery terms, we can say that Origenis will become a special kind of holding company that has different drug candidates and platforms in associated subunits.

What exactly do these compounds look like?

Well, they are novel small molecule drugs with excellent properties, chemical access, and FTO. Our AI-based technology platform takes care of the deep multiparametric optimization as well as IP and fit for purpose. All sensitive steps are performed in our own laboratories. What is different with Origenis drugs is that they cross the blood-brain-barrier in vivo without any restraints. We can therefore address multiple unmet medical needs in the fields of neuro-oncology, neurology, and beyond.

What next milestones do you want to achieve with this reorganization of Origenis?

With this spin-off strategy, we establish multiple pillars that do not cannibalize each other. Both our drugs and our platform represent interesting and competitive products. Our next milestone is to bring our main project, a highly CNS-penetrat­ing CDK9 inhibitor for (neuro)oncological applications into the clinic at the end of 2024. For this purpose, we have already founded a company called “cedekapharma”. We are looking for about EUR 20 million for the financing of the Phase I/II trials, and our model should facilitate external ­financing around IND. Our next spin-off is already in the making: highly selective CDKxy inhibitors targeting additional ­cancers and neurology applications. We continuously validate and increase the ­value of our technology platform by generating further spin-offs with partners. An IPO of Neuron23 will certainly be huge ­milestone for Origenis, but the market sentiment must provide a robust window to go public in 2024. In the positive case, it would be a great scientific and economic validation of our approach. An excellent result for our company that started with nine people and now has almost 30 ­employees.

Do you think this type of spin-off is a model that could be emulated? What advice would you give to other companies that want to follow a similar path? What should they pay particular attention to?

Origenis was never built to be a one-trick-pony show. The development of a sustain­able platform that actually helps create competitive drugs quicker and cheaper does require a lot of effort, scientific and technological skills, a great and dedicated team, meaningful data, and the will to build and to implement disruptive technologies. And patience. The proof is in the pudding. Ours contains (with a smile) a lot of secret sauce.

Dr Thormann, thank you very much for the interview.

The interview was conducted by Urs Moesenfechtel.

This article was published in the current Plattform Life Sciences issue „Circular Bioeconomy 4_23“, which you can view as an e-magazine via the following link:
https://www.goingpublic.de/wp-content/uploads/epaper/epaper-Life-Sciences-4-2023/#0

Autor/Autorin

Redaktionsleiter Plattform Life Sciences at GoingPublic Media AG | Website

Urs Moesenfechtel, M.A., ist seit 2021 Redaktionsleiter der GoingPublic Media AG - Plattform Life Sciences und für die Themenfelder Biotechnologie und Bioökonomie zuständig. Zuvor war er u.a. als Wissenschaftsredakteur für mehrere Forschungseinrichtungen tätig.