Investigational Tuberculosis Candidate Sutezolid

The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) is currently inviting interested product developers to indicate an interest in a sublicence for investigational tuberculosis (TB) treatment sutezolid. Pfizer has granted MPP a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to any remaining patent rights and importantly, to the preclinical and clinical data developed by Pfizer through phase I and phase IIa*.

The agreement allows sublicensees to develop, make, have made, use, file for regulatory approval, sell, import and export sutezolid for prevention and/or treatment of TB (including for multidrug-resistant TB) worldwide.
The full text of the agreement can be found here.

Per the licence’s terms and conditions, MPP seeks to grant sublicences to any entity that can demonstrate a willingness and capacity to further develop and commercialise the product and make the product widely available. MPP will also require any sublicensee to agree upon reasonable diligence requirements and development milestones.

Interested parties should submit as much detail as possible to help MPP understand whether, and to what extent, a granted sublicence will help improve sustainable access to improved regimens to treat TB. Applications should include an assessment of an organisation’s state of readiness, experience in TB research and development, and access to resources for further development.

Please contact MPP’s General Counsel Chan Park for further clarifications about proposal format and content.

*Article updated on 30 October to include mention of “phase IIa”: “Pfizer is granting MPP a non-exclusive, worldwide and royalty-free licence allowing potential future MPP sublicensees to access Pfizer’s preclinical, phase I and phase IIa clinical study data and results with the aim to further study, develop and make available this potential important component of new TB regimens.”

About the Medicines Patent Pool

The Medicines Patent Pool is a United Nations-backed public health organisation working to increase access to, and facilitate the development of, life-saving medicines for low- and middle-income countries. Through its innovative business model, MPP partners with civil society, governments, international organisations, industry, patient groups and other stakeholders, to prioritise and license needed medicines and pool intellectual property to encourage generic manufacture and the development of new formulations. To date, MPP has signed agreements with ten patent holders for thirteen HIV antiretrovirals, one HIV technology platform, three hepatitis C direct-acting antivirals and a tuberculosis treatment. MPP was founded by Unitaid, which serves as sole funder for MPP’s activities in HIV, hepatitis C and tuberculosis.

More information about the Medicines Patent Pool, its public health mission and impact.