Mechelen, Belgium; 4 January 2019, 22.01 CET - Fibrocor Therapeutics L.P. (Fibrocor), a privately held
Canadian company, and Galapagos NV (Euronext & NASDAQ: GLPG) announced a global partnership focused on a novel target for
idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and other indications.
Fibrocor specializes in the development of tissue-specific therapeutics to treat the underlying cause of
fibrotic diseases of the kidney and other organs. The collaboration announced today concerns a small molecule inhibitor program,
currently in the lead optimization stage of development for the treatment of fibrotic diseases of the lung and other organs, the
target of which is undisclosed. In exchange for global commercialization rights to Galapagos, Fibrocor will receive an upfront
payment, and potentially is eligible for further milestone and royalty payments. Galapagos will be responsible for all further
development of the program.
"This collaboration validates the fibrosis drug development expertise of Fibrocor," says Mark A. Steedman,
President and CEO of Fibrocor. "I take my hat off to Dr. Richard Gilbert and the scientific team, including Evotec GmbH, our
CRO[1] partner, for establishing a compelling data package that ultimately attracted Galapagos, a world-renowned biotech
company with a key franchise in fibrosis. We feel this is the beginning of a great relationship and look forward to working with
Galapagos to the benefit of fibrosis sufferers everywhere."
"The collaboration with Fibrocor announced today is an excellent strategic fit for Galapagos, as we continue to
expand our franchise in IPF, and more broadly, in fibrosis," says Dr. Piet Wigerinck, Chief Scientific Officer at Galapagos. "We
are enthusiastic about the drug discovery approach at Fibrocor, and look forward to collaborating with the team to address the
large unmet medical need in fibrosis."
About Fibrocor
Spun out of St. Michael's Hospital and Sinai Health Sytems in Toronto in early 2017, and seed funded by MaRS
Innovation, Fibrocor Therapeutics L.P. represents a new paradigm in drug discovery research as it marries a state of the art
genomics platform (developed by Dr. Jeff Wrana) to a kidney biobank (led by Dr. Darren Yuen), ultimately uncovering underlying
genetic factors associated with specific clinical populations, and using longitudinal data to uncover rapid progressors of the
disease.
MaRS Innovation is a leading provider of commercialization services, early-stage funding, and deal-brokering
with industry and private investors. As a member-based organization made up of 15 Member institutions, MaRS Innovation's mandate is
to drive the commercialization of their most promising research breakthroughs. MaRS Innovation's portfolio consists of early-stage
assets and companies, and we leverage our deep expertise and experience to mature this portfolio via important global and strategic
partnerships. With an active portfolio of more than 40 companies which have raised in excess of $250M from global investors, and
with the creation of more than 400 direct jobs, MaRS Innovation is truly a leader in the commercialization field. For more
information please visit www.marsinnovation.com and follow us on Twitter @marsinnovation.
About Galapagos
Galapagos (Euronext & NASDAQ: GLPG) discovers and develops small molecule medicines with novel modes of action,
three of which show promising patient results and are currently in late-stage development in multiple diseases. Our pipeline
comprises Phase 3 through to discovery programs in inflammation, fibrosis, osteoarthritis and other indications. Our ambition is to
become a leading global biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative
medicines. More information at www.glpg.com.
Contact:
Fibrocor Contact:
Mark Steedman
CEO
+14169034011
Galapagos Investors:
Elizabeth Goodwin
VP IR & Corporate Communications
+1 781 460 1784
Sofie Van Gijsel
Director IR
+32 485 19 14 15
ir@glpg.com
Galapagos Media:
Evelyn Fox
Director Communications
+31 6 53 591 999
communications@glpg.com
Forward-looking statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements, including, among other things, statements regarding the
mechanism of action and profile of, and timing and results of clinical trials with, and potential commercialization of, any
compounds coming out of the inlicensed program, as well as statements regarding potential future milestone and royalty payments.
Galapagos cautions the reader that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which might cause the actual results, financial condition and
liquidity, performance or achievements of Galapagos, or industry results, to be materially different from any historic or future
results, financial conditions and liquidity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
In addition, even if Galapagos' results, performance, financial condition and liquidity, and the development of the industry in
which it operates are consistent with such forward-looking statements, they may not be predictive of results or developments in
future periods. Among the factors that may result in differences are that Galapagos' expectations regarding the further development
of the inlicensed program, including its potential to address a large unmet need in fibrosis for the benefit of fibrosis sufferers
everywhere, may be incorrect, the inherent uncertainties associated with competitive developments, clinical trial and product
development activities and regulatory approval requirements (including that data from research and development programs may not
support further development of the compound(s) due to safety, efficacy or other reasons), Galapagos' reliance on collaborations
with third parties and estimating the commercial potential of Galapagos' product candidates. A further list and description of
these risks, uncertainties and other risks can be found in Galapagos' Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings and reports,
including in Galapagos' most recent annual report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC and other filings and reports filed by Galapagos
with the SEC. Given these uncertainties, the reader is advised not to place any undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.
These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of publication of this document. Galapagos expressly disclaims any
obligation to update any such forward-looking statements in this document to reflect any change in its expectations with regard
thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based or that may affect the likelihood
that actual results will differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements, unless specifically required by law or
regulation.
[1] Contract Research Organization
