Unnatural Products Announces Multi-Target Collaboration with argenx
SANTA CRUZ, Calif., July 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Unnatural Products, Inc. (UNP), a biotech developing orally-delivered macrocyclic peptides to address previously undruggable targets, today announced a strategic multi-target research collaboration with argenx, a global immunology company, to discover and develop oral macrocyclic peptide drugs targeting traditionally “undruggable,” disease targets.
The collaboration will utilize UNP’s proprietary drug discovery platform to generate potent, selective, and orally available macrocyclic peptides against multiple targets of interest identified by argenx. Under the terms of the agreement, UNP will conduct research and development until IND-enabling studies, and argenx will have the exclusive option to develop and commercialize products against these targets across multiple indications.
Under the terms of the agreement, UNP will receive upfront, near-term payments and R&D funding. UNP is also eligible to receive up to approximately $1.5 billion in potential research, development, regulatory, and commercial milestones and option payments, as well as tiered royalties on net sales. Additionally, argenx will make an equity investment in UNP.
Macrocyclic peptides represent a new frontier in drug development, offering the precision of biologics with the convenience of small molecule oral dosing and the ability to reach previously inaccessible intracellular targets. UNP has built the first scalable platform to engineer synthetic macrocycles using AI-guided design, parallel synthesis, and direct-to-biology screening.
“Macrocyclic peptides are opening up a new modality, one that merges the best attributes of biologics and small molecules to drug targets that were once considered out of reach,” said Cameron Pye, Ph.D., CEO and Co-Founder, Unnatural Products. “argenx has built a world-class engine for immunology innovation, and we’re thrilled to partner with them to advance novel macrocyclic peptide therapeutics for patients with immune disorders.”
UNP’s platform combines AI-guided compound design, massively parallel synthesis, and direct-to-biology screening, enabling the rapid generation of drug-like macrocycles that bind challenging targets with antibody-like specificity. UNP is building a pipeline of oral medicines for oncology, immunology and rare diseases.
About Unnatural Products, Inc.
Unnatural Products, Inc. (UNP), a California biotech company, has developed a platform that addresses the complexities of medicinal chemistry in the macrocycle space through a combination of parallel experimentation and machine learning. Founded by macrocycle pioneers whose academic work uncovered how Nature’s macrocycles work, UNP is developing a portfolio of therapeutic macrocycles against high-value and traditionally difficult-to-drug targets. For more information, visit www.unnaturalproducts.com.
For partnering opportunities, email: contact@unnaturalproducts.com.
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