BioNTech and Medigene have announced a three-year research collaboration to develop T-cell receptor- (TCR) based immunotherapies against cancer.

Under the agreement, Medigene will receive $29.4 million upfront from BioNTech, as well as research funding and will be eligible to receive development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments in addition to royalties and on global net sales, the companies said.

As part of the deal, BioNTech will get access to Medigene’s proprietary TCR discovery platform and its PD1-41BB switch receptor and precision pairing technologies.

BioNTech will hold exclusive worldwide development and commercialization rights to all TCR therapies arising from the collaboration.