Tuesday, Idera Pharmaceuticals Inc. (IDRA) said it has achieved a milestone under its worldwide licensing and collaboration agreement with Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. The milestone was achieved upon initiation of a Phase 2 trial by Merck KGaA of EMD 1201081, a novel agonist of Toll-like Receptor 9 or TLR9, in combination with cetuximab in second-line cetuximab-naïve patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.
Under the terms of the agreement, the company said it is entitled to receive a payment of €3.0 million or around $4.3 million from Merck KGaA during the first quarter of 2010. The clinical trial is being conducted in eight countries, including the U.S.
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