By Colin Kellaher 



  Bristol Myers Squibb Co. on Monday said it has signed an exclusive agreement to license Dragonfly Therapeutics Inc.'s interleukin-12 investigational immunotherapy program. 


  The New York biopharmaceutical company said Dragonfly will receive $475 million in near-term upfront payments and is eligible to receive performance-based development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments. 


  Bristol Myers said the license includes Dragonfly's extended half-life cytokine DF6002, an investigational immunotherapy being evaluated in adults for the treatment of advanced solid tumors. 


  Dragonfly, a privately held clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, in May received U.S. Food and Drug Administration clearance for its investigational new drug application to develop DF6002. 


  Bristol Myers said it will become responsible for the development and any subsequent commercialization of DF6002 and its related products world-wide, including strategic decisions, regulatory responsibilities, funding and manufacturing, while Dragonfly will receive up to 24% royalties on world-wide net sales. 


  Write to Colin Kellaher at colin.kellaher@wsj.com