The antiviral startup AiCuris GMBH & Co. KG has signed its first big pharma partner in a deal with Merck & Co. Inc. for a portfolio of treatments for human cytomegalovirus, including the late-stage candidate letermovir.
In the deal announced Oct. 15, Merck gains worldwide rights to develop and commercialize letermovir, a backup candidate and other Phase I assets that work through an alternate mechanism in...