Most of Neurocrine Biosciences’ revenue comes from dyskinesia drugs, and the biotech company has been an active deal maker as it tries to expand its product portfolio and build its drug pipeline.In the latest transaction, Neurocrine is $100 million paid The combination of neuroscience compounds used in the preclinical and clinical phases in the pre-clinical phase, including a pilot plan for phase 2 testing in schizophrenia.
The cash advance will be paid to Tokyo-based Sosei Heptares. Neurocrine will also fund a research collaboration in which the two companies will collaborate to advance preclinical drug candidates through the first phase of testing. Neurocrine said it plans to study Sosei Heptares compounds for the treatment of schizophrenia, dementia and other neuropsychiatric diseases. Based on the progress of these drug candidates, Sosei Heptares can receive up to $1.5 billion in development and regulatory milestone payments. The Japanese company can also receive royalties from drugs generated by the Neurocrine sales alliance.
The cooperative drug is based on Sosei Heptares’ work to develop compounds that target muscarinic receptors. These receptors are the key to brain function and have been validated as drug targets for psychosis and cognitive impairment. The receptors M1 to M5 exist in the brain and some peripheral tissues, but the challenge is to develop drugs that can target the M4 and M1 receptors without causing side effects by activating the M2 and M3 receptors.
Sosei Heptares has developed drugs that target the M4 and M1 receptors, as well as drugs that target both receptors. Sosei Heptares said its drugs can selectively attack these receptors for therapeutic effects. The company also argues that its drugs avoid the side effects caused by non-selective drugs and the efficacy problems that some elderly patients may encounter when using a different class of neurologic drugs called positive allosteric modulators.
After AbbVie gave up the opportunity to develop Sosei Heptares drugs, Neurocrine obtained their license.They were initially Cooperation with Allergan According to the alliance signed in 2016. AbbVie inherited the partnership with it Acquired Allergan last yearThe North Chicago drugmaker cut some of Allergan’s drug candidates in the process of digesting the acquisition, and the Sosei Heptares alliance is one of the projects that was not selected.Japanese company Regained Earlier this year acquired full rights to muscarinic agonist drugs.
Under the terms of the deal announced on Monday, Neurocrine has acquired the global rights to Sosei Heptares muscarinic receptor agonist drug. Sosei Heptares reserves the right to develop M1 agonists for all indications in Japan, but Neurocrine can choose to jointly develop and commercialize these drugs in Japan. The most advanced Sosei Heptares drug covered by the Neurocrine agreement is HTL-0016878, a drug that selectively activates M4. Neurocrine said that it plans to submit an application to F​​DA to start clinical trials in 2022; a placebo-controlled Phase 2 study for schizophrenia may be conducted later this year.
Schizophrenia is also a kind partnership Neurocrine signed an agreement with Takeda Pharmaceuticals last year, and the deal covers seven projects in the Japanese pharmaceutical giant’s pipeline.In recent years, other partnerships that have increased in neurosecretory science include Xenon Pharmaceutical with Idosia, Both transactions cover the form of epilepsy.
Sosei Heptares is not the only company with clinical-stage drugs designed to selectively stimulate muscarinic receptors as a treatment for neurological diseases. Anavex Life Sciences has tested its muscarinic receptor agonists in Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia. Karuna Therapeutics is developing its lead drug for the treatment of schizophrenia. Cerevel Therapeutics was established with drug candidates three years ago Acquired from Pfizer, including M4 selective drugs for schizophrenia under development.
Image courtesy of Jolygon, from Getty Images
