U.S. biotech company Pieris Pharmaceuticals partnered with Roche subsidiary Genentech for $20 million up front and may be eligible to receive more than $1.4 billion in additional milestone payments, The Pharma Letter reported May 25.
The deal will aim to help the companies discover and develop respiratory and ophthalmology therapies.
Pieris shares rocketed by nearly 50 percent within three hours of the news of the deal dropping.
Pieris will be responsible for discovery research, and Genentech will be responsible for IND-enabling activities, clinical development and commercialization of those programs.