milestones

Lilly pays $35M to land TransPharma pact

John Carroll — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 10:57:39 -0400

Eli Lilly is forking over a $35 million upfront payment to nail down the worldwide licensing rights to TransPharma Medical's ViaDerm-hPTH osteoporosis product and a non-exclusive license to its ViaDerm drug delivery system. The two developers will collaborate on the ongoing Phase II trial and then Lilly will take over development responsibility. The pact includes undisclosed milestones and royalties.

"This agreement expands the scope of our osteoporosis program with a novel, patient-centered approach that builds upon our success with Evista and Forteo," commented Dr. Gwen Krivi, vice president of Lilly Research Labs. "As we focus on developing a transdermal PTH product with TransPharma, we will leverage our combined expertise, with the goal of providing patients with a product that meets their desire for an alternative to injection for PTH."

- read the release
- check out the AFX report

Ipsen inks a string of deals in expansion effort

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 06:59:58 -0400

France's Ipsen is buying out Tercica in a $404 million deal, one of three new pacts designed to make Ipsen a billion-dollar a year player in the U.S. Ipsen will pay $9 a share for every share of Tercica it doesn't already own. That's more than double Tercica's $4.41 a share close yesterday. Like a lot of developers, Tercica's been losing money. But the biotech recently launched Somatuline for acromegaly, a pituitary gland disorder.

In a separate deal, Ipsen is buying out Vernalis' U.S. subsidiary, gaining the North American rights to Apokyn. And it inked a deal to acquire Octagen's OBI-1, which is being developed to treat hemophilia. The Octagen deal includes $10.5 million upfront and up to $26 million in milestones.

Taken together, Ipsen says the new acquisitions will position Ipsen to become a significant commercial player in the U.S.

- read Ipsen's release for more

Exelixis gets $150M credit line

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 06:59:54 -0400

Exelixis has struck a $150 million financing deal with Deerfield Management. At Exelixis discretion, the developer can draw down the money as needed over the next 18 months in $15 million installments.

"This transaction significantly increases our financial strength and flexibility over the next 18 months, even if we don't draw on the facility," said George A. Scangos, president and chief executive of Exelixis. "The Deerfield facility gives us the time to see our way through this period of major pipeline and business milestones and puts us in a position of strength as we advance our various partnering discussions."

- here's the release on the financing
- read the AP report

SPOTLIGHT: Anesiva inks $114M licensing deal

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 06:59:53 -0400

Transcription Factor Therapeutics has licensed the worldwide rights to Anesiva's NF-kB Decoy program, which includes the clinical drug candidate Avrina. NF-kB Transcription Factor Decoy inhibits NF-kappa B, a protein implicated in the inflammatory cascade in diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), eczema, rheumatoid arthritis, and asthma. Anesiva gets an upfront fee and up to $114 million in milestone payments if two products are developed. Release

SPOTLIGHT: Antisoma gets $25M milestone from Novartis

Thu, 29 May 2008 06:59:53 -0400

Antisoma has received a $25 million milestone payment from Novartis, triggered by the recent initiation of a phase III trial of ASA404 in non-small cell lung cancer. Release

Lexicon cuts staff, focuses on R&D

Wed, 28 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

Lexicon is reorganizing and cutting staff as it pursues its aggressive strategy to build its pipeline. The cuts will allow Lexicon to devote its resources to its strategic, business, and clinical development initiatives. Lexicon didn't discuss numbers but said facilities in Texas and New Jersey would feel the brunt of the cuts. Lexicon expects the move to reduce its expenses by $4 million for the balance of 2008.

"This reorganization is a significant milestone in the process we began in early 2007 to transform ourselves into a biopharmaceutical company with a pipeline of innovative drug products that derive from our unique insights into the human genome,'' said CEO Arthur Sands. Lexicon's 10 to 10 program is an initiative with the goal of advancing 10 drug candidates into human clinical trials by 2010. He added, "This action will reduce operating expenses associated with our research and discovery efforts and allow us to deploy these resources into key clinical development areas, including our four programs currently in human clinical trials.''

- read the announcement from Lexicon

Migenix cuts costs to stretch cash

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:59:55 -0400

Canada's Migenix is cutting its staff in an effort to preserve cash. The company, which is developing the anti-infective drug Omigard, cut six workers, reduced its CEO's salary and downsized its board of directors as it awaits results from a Phase III trial of the drug. Migenix says it's also looking into additional sources of funding as it develops Omigard and another drug, MX-2401.

"We must preserve our cash during this very difficult financial market for biotech companies. With the significant value-driving milestones we expect during the second half of this year and the first half of next year--along with the potential start of Omigard(TM) related revenues--we must take these actions to extend our cash runway as long as possible while continuing to advance our greatest product opportunities," said Migenix's CEO Jim DeMesa.

- check out the release
- read this report for more

JapanBridge pays $26M for ProStrakan patch

Fri, 23 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

JapanBridge is paying $26 million in upfront and milestone payments for the rights to develop and commercialize Sancuso, a transdermal patch for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. This patch was developed by Scotland's ProStrakan, which submitted an NDA for the drug in 2007 and is awaiting final approval. ProStrakan expects to launch the drug this year. JapanBridge will market Sancuso in Japan, China, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia, and receive royalties on sales there.

MPM Capital and Itochu Corporation formed JapanBridge to "address unmet needs for important new Western oncology therapies in the Far East," according to the statement. This is JapanBridge's first deal.

- see this press release for more

Myriad Genetics pencils in $350M deal for Flurizan

Thu, 22 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

Myriad Genetics has landed a key partnership for its late-stage Alzheimer's therapy. H. Lundbeck has agreed to pay $100 million in an upfront fee along with $250 million in milestones for the European rights to Flurizan. The pact includes escalating royalties on sales. Myriad will hand a sublicense royalty check to Encore Pharmaceuticals.

Myriad is still looking for a co-promotion deal in the U.S. for Flurizan, planning to tackle the specialty market itself while a major pharma company markets the drug to the primary care crowd. The developer is also seeking a deal for Japan and the Pacific Rim that's more in line with the pact now forged for Europe.

One Phase III trial for Flurizan has already been completed with data expected in June. A second late-stage trial is underway and should be wrapped at the end of this year.

- check out the press release
- read the story in MarketWatch

FDA OKs Adolor's Entereg in first approval

Wed, 21 May 2008 06:59:56 -0400

Exton, PA-based Adolor hit a major milestone with the FDA's approval of Entereg for postoperative ileus, a common condition following surgery that can extend a patient's hospital stay. This is the first approval for Adolor, which partnered with GlaxoSmithKline to get the drug through the approval process. Adolor gained $50 million up front from its pact with GSK and signed on to up to $220 million more in milestones.

The FDA's approval marks "the culmination of a substantial collaborative effort among Adolor, GlaxoSmithKline, and our clinical investigators," Adolor CEO Michael R. Dougherty said in a statement. "Entereg is the first and only product that has demonstrated the ability to address this serious condition, which has negative consequences for patients, and imposes considerable expense on the health-care system."

It wasn't easy. Researchers had to deal with two approvable letters from the FDA, in 2005 and 2006, and a three-month delay at the beginning of the year.

- check out this release
- read the report from the Triangle Business Journal