Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Roche has licensed the development and subsequent sale of two patent families and molecules from Spanish biotechnology company Oryzon Genomics, which will be used in the treatment of oncological and hematological diseases.

Roche has purchased two patent families and molecules from Spanish biotechnology company Oryzon Genomics, which will be used to treat oncological and hematological diseases.

The molecule whose development is most advanced is ORY-1001, which was granted orphan drug status to treat rare medical conditions by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in August, 2013 for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. If all research and regulatory approval is successfully achieved, the product could be on the market in five or six years.

The agreement also includes an initial two-year collaborative research program between Oryzon and Roche’s Translational Clinical Research Center in New York, in order to better understand the potential for such molecules in oncology and hematology.

This is the most significant agreement that a Spanish biotechnology firm has reached with a multinational pharmaceuticals company. Oryzon will receive $21 million (€15.3 million) as an initial payment and for near-term milestones. The company could also receive potential payments for reaching clinical development and sales milestones in hematology, cancer and non-malignant indications which could surpass $500 million (€364 million at current exchange rates).

Oryzon currently has a portfolio of 18 patent families for molecules under study, of which only two are included in this agreement.