Servier’s decision to exit a Parkinson’s disease pact has triggered belt tightening at French biotech Oncodesign Precision Medicine. The loss of a shot at a milestone prompted OPM to lay off staff and halve the salaries of two top executives.
OPM reacquired the rights to OPM-201 late last year. Fellow French native Servier took the LRRK2 inhibitor into a phase 1 trial in healthy volunteers in 2022 but backed out before the publication of final results from the study. OPM, which ended December with just 5.1 million euros ($5.6 million), had expected to receive a milestone payment from Servier this year.
Philippe Genne, CEO of OPM, said in a statement that the “termination of the collaboration with Servier has had a serious impact on the company's 2025 budget, at a time when we are witnessing a significant attrition of investments in our field, particularly for listed companies.” The situation means OPM will “have to make drastic choices to adapt [and] get through this period,” the CEO said.
This saw OPM make five employees redundant in January. OPM shared the first details of the layoffs in its annual results after the French stock market closed Thursday. April 3. The company’s CEO and chief scientific officer also took 50% pay cuts as part of the push to reduce spending.
OPM teased “further planned savings on non-priority programs” without providing further details. The focus on cost cutting is in line with a January letter to shareholders from Genne, who warned (PDF) that “these challenging times demand a sharper focus and a pragmatic, agile approach to management.”
The biotech cut operating expenses by 19% last year by focusing on the RIPK2 inhibitor OPM-101 and its work with Navigo Proteins to develop radioligands. OPM plans to enroll the first patient in a phase 1b/2a trial of OPM-101 in advanced melanoma patients with resistance to anti-PD-1 in July.
OPM wants to find a new partner for OPM-201. The company has been here before. OPM-201 grew out of work that Ipsen funded from 2011 to 2017. When Ipsen walked away, OPM took the program forward itself and landed a deal with Servier two years later.