FILE PHOTO: The company's logo is seen at the new cell and gene therapy factory of Swiss drugmaker Novartis in Stein, Switzerland, November 28, 2019. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo
(Reuters) -Swiss drugmaker Novartis will pay up to $1 billion to U.S. biotech Matchpoint Therapeutics to develop oral drugs for several inflammatory diseases.
Matchpoint said on Thursday it will use its technology to develop drugs that block the activity of a specific protein, helping to lower the production of inflammation-causing signals.
