Chiesi Group has entered an exclusive global license agreement with Aliada Therapeutics, a wholly owned subsidiary of AbbVie. The deal centers on a platform technology designed to ferry large-molecule therapies across the protective blood-brain barrier (BBB) for lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs).
While the companies did not disclose the financials of the deal. Under the terms of the license, Chiesi gains exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize specific enzyme replacement therapies using Aliada’s platform. Aliada will receive an upfront payment and becomes eligible for future development and sales-based milestone payments, plus tiered royalties on any product sales. Chiesi will bear all costs for subsequent global research, development, and commercialization.
This agreement marks a pivotal evolution from a research collaboration initiated in 2023, positioning Chiesi to translate promising preclinical data into potential new treatments. Current enzyme replacement therapies for LSDs often cannot reach the brain, leaving devastating cognitive and neurological symptoms unaddressed.
Giacomo Chiesi, Executive Vice President of Chiesi Global Rare Diseases, emphasized the patient-centric motivation behind the deal: “These aspects of the disease are frequently underserved, yet they can profoundly affect patients and their families. By advancing this research, we intend to go beyond symptom management.”
The MODEL Platform Technology
At the core of the agreement is Aliada’s proprietary MODEL platform. This technology is engineered to harness the brain’s own transport mechanisms, enabling the efficient delivery of large-molecule therapeutics, like enzyme replacements, across the notoriously impenetrable blood-brain barrier. This capability is seen as a next frontier for treating central nervous system (CNS) disorders.
Mitch Goldman, Senior Vice President of R&D at Chiesi Global Rare Diseases, noted the deepened collaboration: “We’re advancing therapies and opening the door to identifying therapeutic pathways for lysosomal storage disorders, supported by encouraging preclinical data. What truly drives us is the urgent call from patients and families to move beyond symptom management and directly address the unmet neurological burden. That inspiring call to action shapes our work every day.”
This deal significantly bolsters the pipeline for Chiesi Global Rare Diseases, the Boston-based business unit launched in 2020. It underscores a strategic focus on BBB-crossing technologies, coming shortly after another recent licensing deal with Swedish biotech Key2Brain for similar ultra-rare CNS disorders. The unit currently markets ten rare disease therapies, including three for LSDs.
