Bristol Myers Squibb is levering Fulcrum Therapeutics out of its life. MyoKardia, a biotech BMS bought in 2020, was working with Fulcrum to find cardiomyopathy targets but recently decided to end the alliance.
Fulcrum entered into a collaboration with MyoKardia in July 2020. MyoKardia paid $10 million upfront and $2.5 million in prepaid research funding. In return, Fulcrum did assay screening and other activities to identify and validate potential cardiomyopathy gene targets. The goal was to find targets capable of modulating genes linked to certain genetically defined cardiomyopathies.
BMS bought MyoKardia for $13.1 billion later in 2020, and the Fulcrum alliance continued under the new owner. Later, BMS began jettisoning alliances at a fast clip as CEO Chris Boerner, Ph.D., stamped his mark on the Big Pharma, axing programs bought in from Agenus, Century Therapeutics, Eisai and Immatics.
The addition of Fulcrum to the list of BMS’ former partners derives the biotech of a shot at a sizable payday. Some targets were worth up to $150 million in milestones. Other targets could have netted Fulcrum up to $298.5 million. In the end, the biotech received $2.5 million tied to a preclinical milestone.
News of the deal termination arrives about six months after Fulcrum’s dystrophy candidate flunked a phase 3 trial. The biotech received $80 million from Sanofi in the run-up to the readout, but the French drugmaker ended the alliance in the aftermath of the phase 3 flop.
Fulcrum is now focused on pociredir, a potential treatment for sickle cell disease. The biotech expects to share phase 1b data on the 12-mg dose in mid-2025 and follow up with results on the 20-mg dose by the end of the year. With $241 million to its name at the end of last year, the biotech estimates its runway extends into at least 2027.