Lisavanbulin

Allschwil, Switzerland, June 20, 2024 Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd, Allschwil (SIX: BSLN), a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to meeting the needs of patients with severe bacterial and fungal infections, announced today that it has entered into an asset purchase agreement with the Glioblastoma Foundation Inc., for Basilea’s oncology drug candidate lisavanbulin (BAL101553), which has been developed as a potential therapy for glioblastoma, the most common type of primary brain cancer.1 Dr. Marc Engelhardt, Chief Medical Officer of Basilea, said: “Glioblastoma is one of the most lethal types of brain cancer and available therapeutic options are very limited. Partnering lisavanbulin with the Glioblastoma Foundation is important to us, as it enables patients to continue having access to this promising anticancer drug candidate, now that Basilea has changed its strategic focus to anti-infectives.” Dr. Gita Kwatra, Chief Executive Officer of the Glioblastoma Foundation, said: “We are delighted to partner with Basilea and take over the development of lisavanbulin for glioblastoma patients. Lisavanbulin has shown excellent activity against glioblastoma in PDX preclinical models as well as efficacy in phase 1 and 2 studies. We strongly believe that lisavanbulin will be effective in a subset of glioblastoma patients and we are looking forward to initiating clinical trials of lisavanbulin in the US.” Under the terms of the agreement, Basilea sells and transfers all rights to lisavanbulin to the Glioblastoma Foundation for an undisclosed initial purchase price. In addition, Basilea will participate in future proceeds from any potential commercial partnerships at a fixed double-digit percentage. The Glioblastoma Foundation will continue the post-trial access program for patients from previous clinical studies to continue to receive lisavanbulin. Also, the Glioblastoma Foundation will further explore the therapeutic value of lisavanbulin for the treatment of glioblastoma. About lisavanbulin (BAL101553) Lisavanbulin (BAL101553, the prodrug of BAL27862)2, has been investigated as a potential therapy for glioblastoma in clinical phase 1 and 2 studies.3, 4, 5 In preclinical studies, lisavanbulin demonstrated in-vitro and in-vivo activity against diverse treatment-resistant cancer models, including tumors refractory to conventional approved therapeutics and radiotherapy.6, 7, 8 Lisavanbulin efficiently distributes to the brain, with anticancer activity in glioblastoma models.9, 10 The active moiety, BAL27862, binds to the colchicine site of tubulin, with distinct effects on microtubule organization,11 resulting in the activation of the "spindle assembly checkpoint" which promotes tumor cell death.12 Lisavanbulin has been granted Orphan Drug Designation by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of malignant glioma (brain cancer), including glioblastoma. About Glioblastoma Foundation The mission of the Glioblastoma Foundation is to transform the standard of care for glioblastoma. It is based in Durham, North Carolina (USA) and supports the development of new drugs and other effective therapies for glioblastoma. Because each glioblastoma is different, it is likely that no one drug will work for everyone, and any therapies for glioblastoma will need to be targeted. The Glioblastoma Foundation supports the development of targeted therapies for glioblastoma. The organization also provides support for patients, and raises awareness of glioblastoma. For more information, please visit glioblastomafoundation.org. About Basilea Basilea is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company founded in 2000 and headquartered in Switzerland. We are committed to discovering, developing and commercializing innovative drugs to meet the needs of patients with severe bacterial and fungal infections. We have successfully launched two hospital brands, Cresemba for the treatment of invasive fungal infections and Zevtera for the treatment of bacterial infections. In addition, we have preclinical and clinical anti-infective assets in our portfolio. Basilea is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (SIX: BSLN). Please visit basilea.com. Disclaimer This communication expressly or implicitly contains certain forward-looking statements, such as "believe", "assume", "expect", "forecast", "project", "may", "could", "might", "will" or similar expressions concerning Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd, Allschwil and its business, including with respect to the progress, timing and completion of research, development and clinical studies for product candidates. Such statements involve certain known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd, Allschwil to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd, Allschwil is providing this communication as of this date and does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. For further information, please contact: Peer Nils Schröder, PhD Head of Corporate Communications & Investor Relations Basilea Pharmaceutica International Ltd, Allschwil Hegenheimermattweg 167b 4123 Allschwil Switzerland Phone +41 61 606 1102 E-mail media_relations@basilea.com investor_relations@basilea.com This press release can be downloaded from . References B. M. Alexander, T. F. Cloughesy. Adult Glioblastoma. Journal of Clinical Oncology 2017 (35), 2402-2409 J. Pohlmann, F. Bachmann, A. Schmitt-Hoffmann et al. BAL101553: An optimized prodrug of the microtubule destabilizer BAL27862 with superior antitumor activity. Cancer Research 2011, 71 (8 supplement), abstract 1347 ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03250299 ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02895360; M. Joerger, T. Hundsberger, S. Haefliger et al. Safety and anti-tumor activity of lisavanbulin administered as 48-hour infusion in patients with ovarian cancer or recurrent glioblastoma: a phase 2a study. Investigational New Drugs 2023 (41), 267-275 ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02490800; J. S. Lopez, S. Häfliger, R. Plummer et al. Evaluation of response-predictive biomarkers for lisavanbulin: A phase II study in patients with recurrent glioblastoma. ESMO Open 2023, Vol 8, 1, Suppl 2, 100941. A. Sharma, A. Broggini-Tenzer, V. Vuong et al. The novel microtubule targeting agent BAL101553 in combination with radiotherapy in treatment-refractory tumor models. Radiotherapy Oncology 2017 (124), 433-438 G. E. Duran, H. Lane, F. Bachmann et al. In vitro activity of the novel tubulin active agent BAL27862 in MDR1(+) and MDR1(-) human breast and ovarian cancer variants selected for resistance to taxanes. Cancer Research 2010, 70 (8 supplement), abstract 4412 F. Bachmann, K. Burger, G. E. Duran et al. BAL101553 (prodrug of BAL27862): A unique microtubule destabilizer active against drug refractory breast cancers alone and in combination with trastuzumab. Cancer Research 2014, 74 (19 supplement), abstract 831 A. Schmitt-Hoffmann, D. Klauer, K. Gebhardt et al. BAL27862: a unique microtubule-targeted agent with a potential for the treatment of human brain tumors. Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 2009, 8 (12 supplement), C233 A. C. Mladek, J. L. Pokorny, H. Lane et al. The novel tubulin-binding 'tumor checkpoint controller' BAL101553 has anti-cancer activity alone and in combination treatments across a panel of GBM patient-derived xenografts. Cancer Research 2016, 76 (14 supplement), abstract 4781 A. E. Prota, F. Danel, F. Bachmann et al. The novel microtubule-destabilizing drug BAL27862 binds to the colchicine site of tubulin with distinct effects on microtubule organization. Journal of Molecular Biology 2014 (426), 1848-1860 F. Bachmann, K. Burger, H. Lane. BAL101553 (prodrug of BAL27862): the spindle assembly checkpoint is required for anticancer activity. Cancer Research 2015, 75 (15 supplement), abstract 3789 Press release (PDF)

A deal with Pfizer follows a busy few weeks that saw Basilea Pharmaceutica acquire an invasive mold infection drug from Gravitas Therapeutics and an endolysin antibacterial from Tonabacase. Only two and a half years after Pfizer acquired infectious disease biotech Amplyx for an undisclosed sum, the Big Pharma has sold the lead antifungal asset from that deal to Basilea Pharmaceutica. In its third deal in a month, Basilea is handing over $37 million upfront for the rights to the broad-spectrum antifungal, called fosmanogepix, as well as the rights to a preclinical antifungal compound. Today’s deal means the Swiss biotech will be liable to pay up to $110 million to Pfizer in commercial milestones should the drug reach the market. Basilea is also taking on the obligations and rights from previous agreements for the drug, which add up to $396 million in various development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments. Fosmanogepix has remained in phase 2 development for the treatment of a fungal disease called candidemia and invasive mold infections since Amplyx came under Pfizer’s wing, but Basilea plans to kick-start a phase 3 trial in mid-2024. Pfizer will retain the right of first negotiation for the commercial license to fosmanogepix if it clears phase 3 trials. It won’t be Basilea’s first interaction with Pfizer, however—the Big Pharma secured the Europe rights to Basilea’s approved antifungal Cresemba back in 2017 and also has the license in China. Basilea CEO David Veitch hailed today’s deal as a “transformative transaction for us.” As well as Cresemba, the company also owns the antibiotic Zevtera, and Veitch said gaining fosmanogepix “provides a strong commercial near-term opportunity beyond our currently marketed anti-infectives.” It follows a busy few weeks of dealmaking that saw Basilea acquire an invasive mold infection drug from Gravitas Therapeutics and an endolysin antibacterial from South Korea’s Tonabacase. “We have now executed three transactions over the course of the last few weeks that have significantly strengthened our clinical-stage portfolio, and we continue to see interesting opportunities for further transactions in the future,” Veitch added. The recent deals are the latest example of Basilea’s pivot away from oncology to focus solely on anti-infectives, a move that got off to a bumpy start at the beginning of the year when preclinical profiling of an antifungal program purchased from Fox Chase Chemical Diversity Center for an undisclosed fee led the company to hand the asset back. The terminated agreement was part of an overall restructuring at Basilea that also included the decision not to expand studies for lisavanbulin, a tumor checkpoint controller. Instead, the restructured company pivoted from oncology to focus solely on anti-infectives, such as Zevtera, which is already marketed in Europe and is now awaiting an FDA decision.