Eutilex Co. Ltd. announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Ltd. A deal that infuses new momentum into Eutilex's antibody and anti-tumor T cell therapy development programs. Under the agreement, Huahai takes a $30 million equity stake in Eutilex and receives an exclusive license to develop and commercialize EU-101, a humanized monoclonal antibody developed by Eutilex for cancer treatment, in the People's Republic of China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. EU-101 has mounted a powerful attack on tumors by activating essential parts of the immune system in early preclinical studies.

Eutilex is eligible to earn milestone payments from Huahai for EU-101 that may total as much as $35 million for 10 approved immuno-oncology indications. Huahai also will pay Eutilex royalties from future EU-101 sales in its markets. Huahai will be eligible to participate in Eutilex's worldwide licensing revenues and will receive royalties from net sales if Eutilex commercializes EU-101 in markets other than those for which Huahai has exclusive rights.

Meanwhile, Eutilex's lead adoptive T cell therapy, 4-1BB CTL, has been proven safe in multiple Phase 1 clinical trials on terminally-ill cancer patients, with none of the toxic side effects that have plagued CAR-T drugs. Some patients with solid tumors or hematologic cancers who were treated with Eutilex's T cell therapy went into a period of remission that lasted as long as two-and-a-half years -- the length of follow-up monitoring for Phase 1 research. The Huahai deal also is helping Eutilex further expand global clinical trials on T cell therapies and further develop its pipeline.

Huahai, long-known as a major producer of active ingredients for drugs, has recently been expanding into finished drugs. It has issued more than one billion yuan in bonds to build a new biopharmaceutical industrial park in Hangzhou, China.