Glaxo's start of Phase 1 study of HBV drug triggers $1.5M milestone to Ionis Pharma

• Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) earns a $1.5M milestone payment from development partner GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) triggered by the latter's initiation of a Phase 1 clinical trial assessing IONIS-HBV-Lrx for the treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. The drug candidate incorporates Ionis' Ligand Conjugated Antisense (LICA) technology which increases drug potency by enhancing its delivery to target tissue, in this case, the liver.
• The companies are also collaborating on a generation 2.0+ antisense HBV drug, IONIS-HBVrx.