AstraZeneca exercised an option to license a preclinical EGFR degrader from Pinetree Therapeutics, paying $25 million and setting up potential milestone payments totaling up to about $500 million plus royalties. The asset, PTX-299, is built on Pinetree’s AbReptor platform to degrade membrane-bound and extracellular proteins. AstraZeneca’s existing oncology footprint includes EGFR-directed treatment Tagrisso, and the licensed candidate is designed for EGFR-expressing tumors, including EGFR-mutant disease. Pinetree said the licensing decision followed encouraging preclinical progress and marked validation for its protein degradation platform. The deal comes as Pinetree—led by Hojuhn Song—recently raised a Series B round of $47 million. For biotech dealmaking, it reinforces that large pharmas are continuing to buy into early-stage degradation platforms with option structures that preserve downside. Operationally, teams will watch how quickly AstraZeneca moves PTX-299 into additional studies, particularly around target engagement, resistance biology, and tolerability.