Anacor's Partner GlaxoSmithKline Awarded up to $94 Million in U.S. Government Funding to Support Development of GSK '052, a Novel Gram-negative Antibiotic Discovered by Anacor
PALO ALTO, Calif., Sep 07, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Anacor Pharmaceuticals /quotes/zigman/1553440/quotes/nls/anac ANAC +2.47% announced today that its partner, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), has been awarded a contract with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to support the ongoing development of GSK2251052 (GSK '052, formerly AN3665), a novel boron-based Gram-negative systemic antibiotic discovered by Anacor.
The contract provides up to $94 million in funding for up to four years to support studies to evaluate the efficacy of GSK '052 against bioterrorism threats, Phase 2 clinical trials for ventilator-associated pneumonia, and Phase 3 trials for complicated intra-abdominal infections.
"BARDA's financial support for the development of GSK '052 will help ensure the rapid development of this compound toward its approval in all relevant indications," said David Perry, Anacor's Chief Executive Officer. "With its novel mechanism of action, and potential to be administered both orally and intravenously, we believe GSK '052 has the potential to improve the lives of patients suffering from Gram-negative bacterial infections which have grown increasingly resistant to existing antibiotics."
For the full press release issued by the HHS, please visit the HHS website at http://www.phe.gov/Preparedness/news/Pages/gramnegative-110906.aspx .
About GSK '052
GSK '052 is a novel boron-based, systemic antibiotic being developed for the treatment of infections caused by Gram-negative bacteria. GSK '052 specifically targets the bacterial enzyme leucyl-transfer RNA synthetase, or LeuRS, which is required for protein synthesis. The inhibition of protein synthesis leads to termination of cell growth and cell death. Since there are no commercially available antibiotics that target LeuRS, there is no known pre-existing bacterial resistance to the target. Preclinical and Phase 1 studies suggest that GSK '052 is a promising drug candidate for the treatment of infections caused by a broad range of Gram-negative bacteria, including E. coli, K. pneumoniae, Citrobacter spp., S. marcescens, Proteus spp., Providencia spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter spp. as well as other pathogens responsible for complicated urinary tract infections (cUTI), complicated intra-abdominal infections (cIAI), ventilator-associated pneumonia and hospital acquired pneumonia. GSK '052 is currently being studied in two Phase 2b trials for the treatment of cUTI and cIAI.
Anacor licensed this compound to GSK in July 2010 under the companies' ongoing research and development collaboration. Anacor received an option exercise fee of $15 million and is eligible to receive future development milestones up to $75.5 million, commercial milestones up to $175 million, and double-digit tiered royalties with the potential to reach the high teens on annual net sales. GSK is responsible for all further development and any resulting commercialization of GSK '052.
About Anacor Pharmaceuticals
Anacor is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel small-molecule therapeutics derived from its boron chemistry platform. Anacor has five compounds in clinical development, all of which were internally discovered, including its three lead programs: AN2690, a topical antifungal for the treatment of onychomycosis; AN2728, a topical anti-inflammatory PDE-4 inhibitor for the treatment of psoriasis and atopic dermatitis; and GSK 2251052, or GSK '052 (formerly referred to as AN3365), a systemic antibiotic for the treatment of infections caused by Gram-negative bacteria, which has been licensed to GlaxoSmithKline under the companies' research and development agreement. In addition, Anacor is developing AN2718 as a topical antifungal product candidate for the treatment of onychomycosis and skin fungal infections, and AN2898 as a topical anti-inflammatory product candidate for the treatment of psoriasis and atopic dermatitis.
About BARDA
BARDA, within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, provides a comprehensive integrated portfolio approach to the advanced research and development, stockpile acquisition, innovation, and manufacturing infrastructure building for vaccines, drugs, therapeutics, diagnostic tools, and non-pharmaceutical products necessary to respond to public health medical emergencies. This includes response activities for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats, as well as pandemic influenza and emerging infectious diseases.