NEWARK, CA / ACCESS Newswire / April 16, 2025 / Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. ("Protagonist" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company pioneering the discovery and development of peptide-based therapeutics, today announced that on April 15, 2025 (the "Grant Date"), it issued an equity inducement award to a new employee upon his commencement of employment with the Company in accordance with the terms of his employment offer letter. The award was granted under the Company's Amended and Restated 2018 Inducement Plan, which was adopted on May 29, 2018, and amended on February 18, 2020 and February 15, 2022.
The new employee received options to purchase 20,000 shares of the Company's common stock on the Grant Date. The exercise price of the options is equal to $46.95, the closing price of the Company's common stock on the Nasdaq Stock Market on the Grant Date. The options will vest over a four-year period, with 25 percent of the options vesting on the first anniversary of the employee's start date and the remainder vesting in equal monthly installments over three years thereafter. The award was approved by the Compensation Committee of the Company's Board of Directors and was granted as a material inducement to the employee's entering into employment with the Company in accordance with Nasdaq Marketplace Rule 5635(c)(4).
About Protagonist Therapeutics
Protagonist Therapeutics is a discovery through late-stage development biopharmaceutical company. Two novel peptides, icotrokinra and rusfertide, derived from Protagonist's proprietary discovery platform are currently in advanced Phase 3 clinical development, with New Drug Application submissions to the FDA expected in 2025. Icotrokinra (JNJ-2113) is a first-in-class investigational targeted oral peptide that selectively blocks the Interleukin-23 receptor ("IL-23R") which is licensed to Janssen Biotech, Inc., a Johnson & Johnson company. Following icotrokinra's joint discovery by Protagonist and Johnson & Johnson scientists pursuant to the companies' IL-23R collaboration, Protagonist was primarily responsible for development of icotrokinra through Phase 1, with Johnson & Johnson assuming responsibility for development in Phase 2 and beyond. Rusfertide, a mimetic of the natural hormone hepcidin, is currently in Phase 3 development for the rare blood disorder polycythemia vera (PV). Rusfertide is being co-developed and will be co-commercialized with Takeda Pharmaceuticals pursuant to a worldwide collaboration and license agreement entered into in 2024 under which the Company remains primarily responsible for development through NDA filing. The Company also has a number of pre-clinical stage oral drug discovery programs addressing clinically and commercially validated targets, including the IL-17 oral peptide antagonist PN-881, an oral hepcidin program, and an oral obesity program.
More information on Protagonist, its pipeline drug candidates and clinical studies can be found on the Company's website at protagonist-inc.com.
Investor Relations Contact
Corey Davis, Ph.D.
LifeSci Advisors
+1 212 915 2577
cdavis@lifesciadvisors.com
Media Contact
Virginia Amann, Founder/CEO
ENTENTE Network of Companies
+1 833 500 0061 ext 1
virginiaamann@ententeinc.com
SOURCE: Protagonist Therapeutics
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