MORRISVILLE -- A small Morrisville drug company co-founded by UNC Chapel Hill Chancellor Holden Thorp has signed a development deal that could bring in more than $200 million.
Viamet Pharmaceuticals this morning announced an agreement with the Novartis Option Fund to develop a treatment targeting a class of enzyme known as a metalloenzyme that contains a metal, typically zinc or iron. Viamet's technology is designed to shut down the activity of key metalloenzymes, and make safer and more effective medicines.
The deal includes an upfront fee and milestone payments that could be worth more than $200 million if the treatment proves successful down the road.
That's a significant amount of money for a Triangle company with eight employees. Viamet was started in 2005 by Thorp, then a chemist at UNC, and Thomas O'Halloran, a chemistry professor at Northwestern University.
"Working with quality partners, such as Novartis, will allow us to fully exploit our technology and realize its full potential," said Viamet CEO Robert Schotzinger, in a prepared statement.
In July, the company raised $18 million in venture capital financing. That funding was led by the Novartis Option Fund and included existing investors Intersouth Partners and Hatteras Venture Partners, both of Durham.
The Novartis fund is one of a group of venture funds established by the Swiss drug maker to sponsor promising young companies.
