Cambridge, UK, 04 February 2019: Avacta Group plc (AIM: AVCT), the developer of Affimer^® biotherapeutics and reagents, is pleased to announce that ModernaTX, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA) has exercised its option to enter into an exclusive licensing agreement with respect to certain Affimers against a potential therapeutic target that has been part of an ongoing research collaboration between the two companies.

In 2015, Avacta and Moderna entered into a collaboration, license and option agreement under which Moderna was granted exclusive access to Avacta’s Affimer technology for certain collaboration targets and the option to enter into exclusive license agreements on pre-agreed terms to further research, develop and commercialize Affimers selected by Moderna.

Under the terms of the agreement Avacta may receive undisclosed payments upon future clinical development milestones and royalties in connection with future product sales.

Dr Alastair Smith, Avacta Group Chief Executive Officer, commented: “I am delighted to report that Moderna has exercised its option to enter into this exclusive license agreement with respect to certain Affimer molecules that have been generated through our collaboration. This is further strong validation of the potential of the Affimer drug platform to generate differentiated therapeutic molecules for development. We will continue to support Moderna and their development objectives and I look forward to updating the market as and when key development milestones are met.”