Ajax Therapeutics Acquired by Lilly

Ajax Therapeutics, a biotechnology company co-founded by experts in JAK biology and structures from leading research institutions, including NYU Langone Health, was acquired by Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly). The acquisition marks a major milestone for Ajax and highlights the impact of foundational discoveries made by NYU Langone faculty in advancing new approaches to treating cancer.

Ajax was started in 2019 to develop next-generation JAK2 therapies for patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs), a group of blood cancers that includes myelofibrosis (MF) and polycythemia vera. Among the company’s scientific co-founders was Stevan R. Hubbard, PhD, currently adjunct professor of biochemistry and molecular pharmacology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine.

Dr. Hubbard’s research has focused on the structural and molecular mechanisms that regulate protein tyrosine kinases, enzymes that play central roles in cell signaling and cancer. Over the course of his career, he has made several landmark contributions to the field, including determining the first crystal structure of a tyrosine kinase domain, the insulin receptor, with Dr. Joseph Schlessinger, then director of the Skirball Institute for Biomolecular Medicine at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, and Dr. Moosa Mohammadi, then professor of biochemistry and molecular pharmacology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. He also determined the first crystal structures of small-molecule inhibitors bound to a tyrosine kinase domain, the fibroblast growth factor receptor, and, with Ajax scientific co-founder Dr. Olli Silvennoinen, determined the crystal structure of the JAK2 pseudokinase domain.

Dr. Hubbard’s work on JAK2 structures contributed to the discovery of Ajax’s lead investigational therapy, AJ1-11095, a once-daily oral, first-in-class Type II JAK2 inhibitor currently in Phase 1 clinical development for patients with MF who have been failed by a Type I JAK2 inhibitor. AJ1-11095 was designed to selectively target JAK2 in a way that may offer deeper and more durable disease control for patients with myelofibrosis and polycythemia vera, particularly for those who become resistant to currently approved Type I JAK2 inhibitors.

Facilitated by Technology Opportunities and Ventures, the technology commercialization unit of NYU Langone and New York University, Ajax entered into license and research agreements with the University to collaborate with Dr. Hubbard on his ongoing work with JAK2 structures. NYU Langone Health also participated in Ajax’s Series B financing round through the NYU Langone Venture Fund’s inaugural investment in 2021. 

“The Ajax scientific co-founders are excited that AJ1-11095, which was developed via structure-based and computational drug design, could provide a meaningful new therapeutic option for patients suffering from myeloproliferative neoplasms,” said Dr. Hubbard. 

“At NYU Langone, we are proud to see discoveries rooted in our faculty’s research contribute to innovations with the potential to improve patients’ lives,” said Marc Sedam, Vice President of Technology Opportunities & Ventures. “It also highlights the continuing importance of university-based innovation in shaping the future of medicine by addressing major unmet medical needs. NYU Langone continues to heavily invest in our translational research capacity, which helps create the next generation of therapies and technologies. Results like this show NYU has a world-class commercialization enterprise to the benefit of our researchers and society.”