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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C.20549
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FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
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PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
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Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): May 4, 2000
IMMUNOGEN, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its Charter)
Massachusetts 0-17999 04-2726691
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(State or Other Jurisdiction (Commission (IRS Employer
of Incorporation File Number) Identification No.)
333 Providence Highway, Norwood, Massachusetts 02062
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(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (781) 769-4242
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ITEM 5. OTHER EVENTS
On May 4, 2000, ImmunoGen, Inc. and Genentech, Inc. announced that Genentech has
exclusively licensed ImmunoGen's maytansinoid Tumor-Activated Prodrug (TAP)
technology for use with anti-HER2 antibodies such as Herceptin. Under the terms
of the agreement, Genentech will receive exclusive worldwide rights to
commercialize anti-HER2 targeting products using ImmunoGen's maytansinoid TAP
platform. Genentech will be responsible for manufacturing, product development
and marketing of products resulting from the license; ImmunoGen will be
reimbursed for any preclinical and clinical materials that it makes under the
agreement. ImmunoGen will receive an up-front payment of $2 million. In addition
to royalties on net sales, the terms of the agreement include milestone
payments, assuming all benchmarks are met, for potentially up to $40 million.
The press release announcing the exclusive license agreement is incorporated
herein by reference and filed as exhibit 99.1 hereto.
ITEM 7. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND EXHIBITS
(C) Exhibits.
99.1 The Registrant's Press Release dated May 4, 2000.
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereto duly authorized.
ImmunoGen, Inc.
(Registrant)
Date: May 4, 2000 /s/Kathleen A. Carroll
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Kathleen A. Carroll
Vice President, Finance and
Administration, and principal
financial officer
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EXHIBIT INDEX
Exhibit Sequential
Number Description Page Number(s)
99.1 The Registrant's Press Release
dated May 4, 2000 5
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Exhibit 99.1
IMMUNOGEN CONTACT: Mitchel Sayare, Ph.D.
Chairman and CEO
ImmunoGen, Inc.
(781)769-4242
www.immunogen.com
GENENTECH CONTACTS: www.gene.com
Media Contact:
Sabrina Johnson (650)225-2742
Investor Contact:
Mike Burchmore (650)225-8852
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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ImmunoGen and Genentech Sign Exclusive License Agreement
Cambridge, Mass. and South San Francisco, Calif., May 4, 2000 - ImmunoGen,
Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGN) and Genentech, Inc. (NYSE: DNA) today announced that
Genentech has exclusively licensed ImmunoGen's maytansinoid Tumor-Activated
Prodrug (TAP) technology for use with antibodies such as Herceptin (R).
Under the terms of the agreement, Genentech will receive exclusive
worldwide rights to commercialize anti-HER2 targeting products using
ImmunoGen's maytansinoid TAP platform. Genentech will be responsible for
manufacturing, product development and marketing of products resulting from
the license; ImmunoGen will be reimbursed for any preclinical and clinical
materials that it makes under the agreement. ImmunoGen will receive an
up-front payment of $2 million. In addition to royalties on net sales, the
terms of the agreement include milestone payments, assuming all benchmarks
are met, for potentially up to $40 million.
"Genentech has made a substantial commitment to the development of novel
antibody therapeutics," said Dennis Henner, Senior Vice President of
Research at Genentech, Inc. "Our preclinical work suggests that ImmunoGen's
TAP technology may be able to enhance the efficacy of antibodies directed
against tumors. This collaboration adds a potentially important new
component to our BioOncology initiatives."
"Genentech's leadership in developing and commercializing antibody-based
products for cancer is exceptional," said Mitchel Sayare, Ph.D., Chairman
and CEO of ImmunoGen, Inc. "We are delighted that Genentech has recognized
the value of our maytansinoid platform as a way to create a new generation
of anti-HER2 antibody products for the treatment of cancer."
Genentech, Inc. is a leading biotechnology company that discovers,
develops, manufactures and markets human pharmaceuticals for significant
unmet medical needs. Thirteen of the approved products of biotechnology
stem from Genentech science. Genentech markets seven products directly in
the United States. The company has headquarters in South San Francisco,
California and is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol
DNA.
ImmunoGen, Inc. develops innovative biopharmaceuticals, primarily for
cancer treatment. The Company has created potent tumor-activated prodrugs,
consisting of drugs coupled to monoclonal antibodies for delivery to and
destruction of cancer cells. The most advanced TAP, huC242-DM1/SB-408075,
designed to treat colorectal and pancreatic cancer, is in a Phase I/II
human clinical study. In addition to its maytansinoid platform of TAPs, the
Company is working on other proprietary TAP platforms comprising agents,
such as taxanes, which exert cell-killing activity via different mechanisms
of action.
This press release includes forward-looking statements based on
management's current expectations. Factors that could cause future results
to differ materially from such expectations include, but are not limited
to: the ability to secure future funding; the success of the Company's
research strategy; the applicability of the discoveries made therein; the
difficulties inherent in the development of pharmaceuticals, including
uncertainties as to the timing and results of preclinical studies; delayed
achievements of milestones; reliance on collaborators; uncertainty as to
whether the Company's potential products will succeed in entering human
clinical trials and uncertainty as to the results of such trials;
uncertainty as to whether adequate reimbursement for these products will
exist from the government, private healthcare insurers and third-party
payors; and the uncertainties as to the extent of future government
regulation of the pharmaceutical business.
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