MORRISVILLE, N.C., May 06, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Novan, Inc. (Nasdaq:NOVN) today announced that the Company has secured $12 million in non-dilutive capital from Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (“Ligand”) (Nasdaq:LGND). This transaction further enables the accelerated advancement of the molluscum Phase 3 program within the overall Novan mid-to-late stage clinical development portfolio.
Under the terms of this development funding and royalty agreement, Ligand will provide funding of $12 million in exchange for a tiered royalty of 7 to 10% which will be based on future North American sales of SB206 for the molluscum indication. In addition, Ligand is entitled to receive regulatory and commercial milestones of up to $20 million based on specific regulatory and sales progress. The capital from this transaction is contractually dedicated to the exclusive use in the advancement of the Phase 3 molluscum program. The Novan team will continue to have responsibility for all clinical development and regulatory execution of SB206 and the totality of the molluscum program activity.
“The decision to advance a molluscum indication was driven, in large part, by a strong recommendation from Dr. Tomoko Maeda-Chubachi, our VP of Medical Dermatology,” commented Paula Brown Stafford, President and Chief Operating Officer of Novan. Commenting further, Ms. Stafford added, “we remain focused on smartly advancing the underlying science and executing the mid-to-late stage clinical programs in a highly disciplined manner.”
The Company remains focused on the re-engineering of certain aspects of its internal operations as outlined during last week’s webcast. In particular, the reduction of the existing real estate footprint and the strategic migration of drug substance and product manufacturing remain key objectives for 2019. Progress in these two areas will change the cost characteristics of Novan by reducing the fixed component of the cost base in favor of variable costs.
About Novan
Novan, Inc. is a clinical development-stage biotechnology company focused on leveraging nitric oxide’s naturally occurring anti-microbial and immunomodulatory mechanisms of action to treat a range of diseases with significant unmet needs. We believe that our ability to deploy nitric oxide in a solid form, on demand and in localized formulations allows us the potential to improve patient outcomes in a variety of dermatology, women’s health and gastrointestinal diseases.
