Arbutus Reacquires Greater China Rights to Imdusiran and Announces Scientific Advisory Board with Late-Stage Clinical Focus

Core Insights - Arbutus Biopharma Corporation has reacquired the rights to its lead compound, imdusiran, from Qilu Pharmaceutical, concluding their strategic partnership for the development and commercialization of imdusiran in Greater China [1][2] - The decision to terminate the partnership was influenced by Qilu's pipeline reprioritization and Arbutus' focus on advancing its pipeline efficiently [2] - Imdusiran has shown promising results, achieving functional cure in eight patients during Phase 2a trials [2][3] Company Overview - Arbutus Biopharma is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on infectious diseases, particularly chronic hepatitis B virus (cHBV) [7] - The company is also developing an oral PD-1 inhibitor (AB-101) for cHBV treatment and is involved in legal actions to protect its intellectual property related to its patented LNP technology [7] Product Details - Imdusiran is designed to reduce all HBV viral proteins and antigens, which is essential for reawakening the immune system to control the virus [5] - The treatment has been reported to be generally safe and well-tolerated, with significant reductions in hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and HBV DNA [5] Scientific Advisory Board - Arbutus has established a new Scientific Advisory Board consisting of experts in chronic hepatitis B treatment to guide its strategic evaluation of the cHBV pipeline [2]