BioLineRx, Ltd (JERUSALEM, Israel), a clinical stage drug development company, announced that the company has signed a worldwide exclusive license agreement with Yissum Ltd, the Technology Transfer Company of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, for BioLineRx to develop and commercialize BL-5040, an antagonist of leptin with anti-inflammatory properties for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Rights to the compound were also obtained from Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center. Financial terms of the license were not disclosed.

Leptin is a hormone that has an important role in regulating inflammation as well as appetite control. BL-5040 binds tightly to the leptin receptor and thus blocks the binding of leptin. It has been shown that BL-5040 can block inflammation in animal models without discernible side-effects. BioLineRx will be developing BL-5040 to treat IBDs such as colitis and Crohn's disease.

The compound was initially developed by Professor Arieh Gertler, from the Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food, and the Environment at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in collaboration with Drs. Isabel Callebaut of L'Université Pierre et Marie Curie and Jean Djiane of INRA of France. Thereafter, the collaborative research was carried out with Professor Zamir Halpern and Dr. Eran Elinav, both from the Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, who studied the medical applications of the compound.

BioLineRx was founded in 2003 by leaders in the Israeli life science arena including Teva Pharmaceuticals Ltd, venture capital firms Giza Venture Capital and Pitango Venture Capital, and Hadasit, the technology transfer company of Hadassah Hospital and the Jerusalem Development Authority.