Merck Collaborates With Taiho And Astex For Oncology Research On Developing Small Molecule Inhibitors
Source: Thailand Medical News Jan 06, 2020 4 years, 10 months, 4 weeks, 1 hour, 44 minutes ago
Pharma giant,
Merck also known as
MSD outside the United States and Canada, has announced an exclusive worldwide research collaboration and license agreement with
Taiho Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd., (“Taiho”) and
Astex Pharmaceuticals (UK), a wholly owned subsidiary of Otsuka
Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (“Astex”), focused on the development of
small molecule inhibitors against several drug targets, including the
KRAS oncogene, which are currently being investigated for the treatment of
cancer.
Dr. Roger M. Perlmutter, President,
Merck Research Laboratories told T
hailand Medical News, “At
Merck we continue to pursue new regimens designed to extend the benefits of highly selective therapies to more patients with
cancer. This agreement with
Taiho and
Astex combines our respective s
mall molecule assets and industry-leading expertise in
cancer cell signaling to enable development of the most promising drug candidates.”
Terms of the agreement are such that
Merck, Taiho and
Astex will combine preclinical candidates and their data with knowledge and expertise from their respective research programs. In exchange for providing
Merck an exclusive global license to their
small molecule inhibitor candidates,
Taiho and
Astex will receive an aggregate upfront payment of $50 million and will be eligible to receive approximately $2.5 billion contingent upon the achievement of preclinical, clinical, regulatory and sales milestones for multiple products arising from the agreement, as well as tiered royalties on sales.
Merck will fund research and development and will be responsible for commercialization of products globally.
Taiho has retained co-commercialization rights in Japan and an option to promote in specific areas of South East Asia.
Dr Teruhiro Utsugi, Ph.D., Managing Director at
Taiho added, “
Taiho has used its unique and proprietary drug discovery platform to generate a number of
small molecule inhibitors. This alliance builds on our
KRAS research up to now and together with
Merck, allows us to combine our expertise to significantly accelerate the global research, development, and commercialization of a number of our mutant
KRAS programs by accessing external talent and resources.”
Dr Harren Jhoti, Ph.D., president and CEO of
Astex commented, “Together with our
Taiho colleagues we are delighted to be working with
Merck, one
of the global leaders in
oncology drug development, on this strategic alliance. This collaboration is another testament to
Astex’s position as the leader in fragment-based drug discovery.”
The
KRAS oncogene is among the most frequently mutated
oncogenes in
cancer. It is estimated to occur in more than 90% of pancreatic
cancers and approximately 20% of non-small cell lung
cancers (NSCLC) and is associated with poorer outcomes.
