Marina Biotech, Inc.a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapeutics for hypertension, arthritis, pain and oncology, announcedthat the Company has entered into a binding agreement with Autotelic Bio Inc., to enter into a license of Marina’s IT-103 clinical program, for exclusive development and marketing outside of the United States and Canada.

Under the agreement, Autotelic Bio, a Korean based biotechnology company, will obtain a perpetual license to have the right and responsibility to begin clinical development of IT-103 for marketing approval in South Korea and territories outside of United States and Canada.
Through the agreement, Marina will be entitled to the clinical trial data and any enhancements and inventions developed by Autotelic Bio during this process, as well as royalties on sales.  Under this agreement, Marina retains all rights and territories to IT-103 as non-addictive opioid replacement for extreme pain as well as treatment for familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP).

“We are pleased to execute the agreement for drug development and licensing with Autotelic Bio for IT-103.  This will free up internal resources at Marina while gaining access to regulatory dossier for obtaining marketing approval of IT-103 in the US and Canada,” said Dr. Vuong Trieu, executive chairman of Marina. “The terms of our agreement are a non-dilutive solution for shareholders and accelerate our development timeline.”

The IT-103 Clinical Program

IT-103 is a fixed dose combination of celecoxib, a COX-2 selective nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, and Olmesartan, an antihypertension drug.  The Company believes that by combining a COX-2 inhibitor with an antihypertensive in a single fixed dose combination oral tablet, IT-103 will offer an improved safety profile as compared to currently available and previously marketed COX-2 inhibitors as well as address patients with arthritis who are concurrently taking antihypertension drugs. IT-103 will initially be developed for treatment of combined arthritis and hypertension followed with indication expansion to extreme pain as non-addictive opioid replacement as well as FAP.