Novartis Expands Cardiovascular Pipeline with $750M+ ProFound Therapeutics Deal

Novartis has entered into a significant partnership with Flagship Pioneering's ProFound Therapeutics, marking another major investment in the cardiovascular disease space. The four-year collaboration, announced on Thursday, aims to discover and develop novel protein therapies for cardiovascular conditions using ProFound's proprietary technology.

Deal Structure and Financial Terms

The agreement includes an upfront commitment of $25 million from Novartis, with the potential for additional milestone payments of up to $750 million per target. ProFound Therapeutics will also be eligible for tiered royalties on any resulting products. While the exact number of targets has not been disclosed, the deal's structure suggests a substantial commitment from Novartis to expand its cardiovascular portfolio.

Technological Approach and Strategic Significance

ProFound Therapeutics will leverage its ProFoundry platform to explore the human proteome for novel drug targets. This approach, which utilizes computational and predictive AI models, aims to accelerate the discovery process and uncover previously under-researched biological mechanisms.

Fiona Marshall, president of biomedical research at Novartis, emphasized the strategic importance of this collaboration, stating that it will allow the company to "explore under-researched biology, uncover new mechanisms, and translate pioneering science into life-changing treatments."

Novartis' Expanding Cardiovascular Focus

This partnership comes as Novartis continues to strengthen its position in the cardiovascular market. The company's heart failure drug Entresto saw a 31% year-on-year increase in 2024, generating over $7.8 billion in revenue. However, with generic competitors threatening Entresto's market share, Novartis is actively seeking to diversify and reinforce its cardiovascular pipeline.

In addition to the ProFound deal, Novartis has made several other strategic moves in the cardiovascular space:

1. A $1 billion AI-focused partnership with Generate:Biomedicines in September 2024 for protein therapeutics discovery.
2. The $925 million acquisition of Anthos Therapeutics in February, gaining rights to the blood thinner abelacimab, currently in Phase III trials.
3. Ongoing development of Leqvio, an siRNA therapeutic approved in 2021 for lowering cholesterol in high-risk patients.

As Novartis continues to invest heavily in cardiovascular research and development, the ProFound Therapeutics partnership represents a significant step towards identifying novel targets and developing next-generation therapies in this critical therapeutic area.