Nabi Biopharmaceuticals is partnering with GlaxoSmithKline to develop an anti-smoking vaccine.
Nabi is developing NicVAX, a vaccine whose intent it is to train the immune system to produce antibodies that attach themselves to nicotine. Once the antibodies are stuck to the nicotine, it will not be able to reach the brain, blocking the pleasurable effects of the the drug.
Nabi will receive a $40 million upfront payment from GlaxoSmithKline to complete testing, while GlaxoSmithKline will start developing the second generation of the faccine.
Nabi is currently in the late stages of the clinical study for NicVAX, and if testing is successful, GlaxoSmithKline will be responsible for getting the drug approved and bringing it to market.
Nabi is to receive several milestone payments and royalties on sales, which could bring in more than $500 billion.
For MarketNewsVideo.com, I'm Justin Shackel.
