Categories: NewsPharmaceutical

Protagonist Therapeutics Announces Closing of Worldwide Rusfertide License and Collaboration Agreement with Takeda

NEWARK, CA / ACCESSWIRE / March 18, 2024 / Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (“Protagonist” or the “Company”) today announces the closing of the worldwide collaboration and license agreement for rusfertide with Takeda, a leading values-based, R&D-driven biopharmaceutical company, disclosed on January 31, 2024. Closing of the transaction was contingent on completion of review under the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 in the United States. Protagonist will receive the $300 million upfront payment associated with the transaction in the second quarter of 2024.

About Protagonist

Protagonist Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company with peptide-based new chemical entities (NCEs) rusfertide and JNJ-2113 (formerly PN-235) in advanced stages of clinical development, both derived from the Company’s proprietary technology platform. Protagonist and JNJ scientists jointly discovered PN-235 (now known as JNJ-2113) as part of Protagonist’s Interleukin-23 receptor (IL-23R) collaboration with JNJ and followed it through IND-enabling pre-clinical and Phase 1 studies, with JNJ assuming responsibility for further clinical development. Rusfertide, a mimetic of the natural hormone hepcidin, is the Company’s lead drug candidate currently in a global Phase 3 development program. The randomized portion of the Phase 2 REVIVE study was unblinded, showing positive results and is now complete, with an open-label extension underway. The global Phase 3 VERIFY study of rusfertide in polycythemia vera is ongoing. Rusfertide will be co-developed and co-commercialized with Takeda pursuant to a worldwide collaboration and license agreement with Takeda entered into in January 2024.

More information on Protagonist, its pipeline drug candidates and clinical studies can be found on the Company’s website at www.protagonist-inc.com.

Investor Relations Contact

Corey Davis, Ph.D.
LifeSci Advisors
+1 212 915 2577
cdavis@lifesciadvisors.com

Media Contact

Virginia Amann, Founder/CEO
ENTENTE Network of Companies
virginiaamann@ententeinc.com

SOURCE: Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com

Staff

Recent Posts

Medtronic announces filing of IPO registration statement for Diabetes business, MiniMed

GALWAY, Ireland, Dec. 19, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Medtronic plc (NYSE: MDT), a global leader in…

14 hours ago

Pinealage: the app that turns strangers into meditation companions — in crowdfunding phase

This app will connect people with strangers to meditate together in the real world—an invitation…

14 hours ago

IMG Saxony-Anhalt: 2026 in Sight – Saxony-Anhalt Sets the Pace for Future Industries

Despite challenging framework conditions such as high energy prices, the international introduction of tariffs, and…

14 hours ago

Kirby Medical Center Partners with Switchboard, MD to Automate Patient Communication Workflows

ATLANTA, Dec. 19, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Switchboard, MD is proud to announce a new enterprise partnership with…

14 hours ago

SIERRA7 RECOGNIZED AS A 2026 ELEV8 GOVCON AWARD WINNER

MCLEAN, Va., Dec. 19, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Sierra7, a leader in government healthcare and technology solutions,…

14 hours ago

Medome Launch Heralds the End of Medical Misdiagnoses and Lost Lives

NEW YORK, Dec. 19, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Medome is the first AI technology for Personal Health…

14 hours ago