American oncology company Oncternal Therapeutics is to wind down operations after announcing the sale of its main drug programmes.
Delaware-based Ho’ola Therapeutics has acquired Oncternal’s zilovertamab and ONCT-808, two candidates that were being investigated by the latter in metastatic castration resistant cancer and aggressive B-cell lymphoma, respectively. There is no public information on Ho’ola Therapeutics currently available.
In a statement, Oncternal - a portmanteau of ‘oncology’ and ‘eternal’ - said it will receive $2.25m immediately, with another $750,000 paid when certain contracts with third parties end. The company is not completely separating itself from its assets, with Oncternal eligible to receive up to $65m in development, regulatory approval and sales milestone payments from any future marketed products.
The sale caps a difficult time for zilovertamab and ONCT-808 under Oncternal’s ownership. Zilovertamab was deprioritised by the company in April 2023 while a high dose of ONCT-808 was linked to a patient death in December 2023.
Zilovertamab, a clinical-stage monoclonal antibody, was being evaluated in the treatment of several blood cancer types via inhibition of receptor tyrosine kinase-like orphan Receptor 1 (ROR1), a protein that plays a role in tumour growth. ONCT-808 also targets ROR1 but is delivered as a CAR-T cell therapy.
Meanwhile, Ho’ola Therapeutics appeared uninterested in picking up Oncternal’s third clinical programme, ONCT-534. The drug failed to perform in a Phase I trial (NCT05917470), with interim results showing no clinically meaningful improvements in a form of prostate cancer.
Following the sale, Octernal stated that all remaining employees have resigned, leaving Craig Jalbert as CEO and sole member of the board of directors. The company had already laid off 37% of its staff in September 2024 when it closed all its clinical trials. Shares crashed 60% at the time, with the company voluntarily delisting from the Nasdaq in March 2025.
“Mr Jalbert will oversee the winddown of Oncternal’s operations, including any future distribution of remaining cash and future rights to any milestone-based payments,” the company said in a statement.
