Boehringer Ingelheim and Circle Pharma have entered a new research partnership and licence agreement to develop a new precision cancer treatment.

The partnership aims to create a first-in-class cyclin inhibitor, potentially offering new hope for patients with hard-to-treat cancers.

Uncontrolled cell growth is a hallmark of most tumours and a key factor in their development.

Genetic alterations, such as mutations or amplifications in genes that regulate cell division, contribute to malignant growth in many solid tumours.

Boehringer targets the proteins involved in this process as a promising strategy for developing new treatments.

Existing methods of targeting cyclin-dependent kinases, which are crucial for cell cycle progression, frequently face challenges such as low selectivity and toxicity.

Circle Pharma's approach involves creating macrocycle therapies that directly inhibit cyclins, thereby regulating cell division more precisely to overcome the limitations of existing treatments.

The latest deal will strengthen the oncology pipeline of Boehringer, which includes a range of cancer cell-directed and immuno-oncology investigational therapies.

The companies aim to discover combinations of therapies that could provide significant benefits for individuals living with cancer.

Circle Pharma is entitled to an upfront payment as well as development, regulatory and sales milestone payments up to $607m.

Boehringer Ingelheim discovery research senior vice-president and global head Clive Wood stated: “We're delighted to be joining forces with Circle's scientists to develop an innovative cancer treatment based on their proprietary macrocycle platform molecules to achieve our goal of transforming the lives of people living with cancer.

“This new collaboration complements our oncology research portfolio, and further reinforces our commitment to tackling intractable targets.”

In September 2024, Boehringer Ingelheim opened a €60m ($66.8m) research building in Vienna, Austria, as the company looks to expand in the oncology therapeutics space.