Alkermes snaps up Rodin Therapeutics for a potential $950 million
pharmafile | November 19, 2019 | News story | Manufacturing and Production, Sales and Marketing | Alkermes, Rodin Therapeutics, pharma
Dublin’s Alkermes is set to acquire US firm Rodin Therapeutics in a deal worth a potential $950 million, it has been revealed.
Through the deal, Alkermes intends to push “Investigational New Drug (IND)-enabling activities” for Rodin’s preclinical products in the treatment of central nervous diseases known as synaptopathies, which manifest through the dysfunction of the body’s synapses.
Alongside this, Alkermes said it will continue Rodin’s preclinical programme investigating frontotemporal dementia patients that have an inherited mutation of the progranulin gene (FTD-GRN), as well as work in haematological disorders and oncology.
“Synaptic loss and dysfunction are associated with certain clinical symptoms regardless of the underlying pathology,” said Craig Hopkinson, Alkermes’ Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of Medicines Development and Medical Affairs. “The platform that Rodin has developed may offer potential utility across a broad spectrum of neuropsychiatric, neurodegenerative and neurodevelopment disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, frontotemporal dementia and depression. In addition, this novel science could have potential applicability in oncology and haematological disorders.”
As part of the agreement, Rodin will be paid an upfront payment of $100 million, with a further $850 million up for grabs dependent on the achievement of pre-specified regulatory and sales goals. Alkermes expects that R&D expenses relating to the development of Rodin’s products will come to around $20 million in 2020.
“Rodin’s targeted approach to strengthening synaptic integrity is backed by a robust translational strategy and may have potential across multiple diseases which are characterized by impaired neuronal and synaptic function,” commented Adam Rosenberg, Rodin’s Chief Executive Officer. “With its proven ability to develop novel medicines for the treatment of CNS disorders, we believe Alkermes is ideally suited to advance this exciting new approach to neurologic diseases and bring potential new treatment options to patients that may benefit from Rodin’s synaptogenic platform.”
Matt Fellows
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