PITTSBURGH, May 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- KaliVir Immunotherapeutics, Inc. today announced a collaboration and global exclusive licensing agreement with Roche for the discovery, development and commercialization of novel oncolytic vaccinia viruses derived from KaliVir's oncolytic immunotherapy VET^TM platform.

KaliVir will work with Roche to leverage KaliVir's proprietary technology platform based on genetically modified vaccinia virus to discover and develop novel oncolytic virus candidates. KaliVir's VET^TM platform can enhance the vaccinia viral backbone with a combination of proprietary genetic modifications to maximize tumor killing and systemic delivery and spread, and can be readily optimized to combine with a wide variety of therapeutic transgenes.

Under the terms of the agreement, KaliVir will generate oncolytic vaccinia virus product candidates derived from the company's VET^TM platform expressing Roche proprietary therapeutic transgenes. Roche will have exclusive license to discover, develop and commercialize the products worldwide. KaliVir will receive an upfront payment, and may be eligible to receive research, development and commercial milestone payments, as well as tiered royalties on commercial sales of products emerging from the collaboration.

"We are extremely excited to work with Roche and its excellent scientific team to identify and develop novel, innovative treatments for cancer patients worldwide," said KaliVir CEO Helena Chaye. "Our VET^TM platform is a powerful engine for identifying novel, innovative oncolytic immunotherapies, and we look forward to further expanding its potential and our broader discovery research capabilities through this discovery collaboration."

"Roche has been discovering and developing breakthrough treatments in oncology for more than 50 years. Building on our strong internal pipeline, we are continually looking for partnerships to foster the discovery and development of innovation to fundamentally change how we deliver care for patients now and in the future," stated James Sabry, Global Head of Pharma Partnering at Roche. "KaliVir and its promising VET^TM platform represent an excellent example of exciting, cutting-edge technologies that we believe could make a difference for cancer patients."

About KaliVir Immunotherapeutics, Inc.
KaliVir Immunotherapeutics is a privately held biotech company developing cutting-edge, next-generation oncolytic viral immunotherapy programs. The company has developed a unique vaccinia virus-based platform that can generate potent novel oncolytic vaccinia viruses with modifications to maximize viral replication and to enhance intravenous delivery and spread (Vaccinia Enhanced Template "VET" Platform). VET^TM platform utilizes the large transgene capacity of the vaccinia virus to deliver therapeutics matched to tumor immunophenotypes to stimulate patients' immune systems and modify the tumor microenvironment. KaliVir's oncolytic product candidates are designed to be safe, potent and systemically deliverable to treat cancer patients across multiple tumor types. KaliVir and Astellas Pharma are developing KaliVir's VET2-L2 oncolytic virus for immuno-oncology through a worldwide licensing agreement. KaliVir is currently advancing multiple therapeutic candidates toward the clinic. For more information, please visit www.kalivir.com.

Contacts for inquiries or additional information:

Paul Youm
Director of Business Development
KaliVir Immunotherapeutics, Inc.

paul.youm@kalivir.com

SOURCE KaliVir Immunotherapeutics