Merck signs Alzheimer’s deal with Alectos
pharmafile | August 16, 2010 | News story | Research and Development, Sales and Marketing | Alzheimer's, Alzheimers, Merck & Co
Merck has entered a $289 million agreement with Canadian company Alectos Therapeutics in a bid to find new Alzheimer’s drugs.
The tie-up will seek to identify and develop compounds that modulate O-linked N-acetylglucosaminidase (O-GlcNAcase), an enzyme thought to be involved in the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
The progressive neurodegenerative condition leads to memory loss, personality changes and often a severe decline in cognitive abilities, for which there is currently no cure.
“Effective medicines to treat the devastating consequences of Alzheimer’s disease are greatly needed, and we are committed to achieve that goal,” said Darryle D. Schoepp, franchise head, neuroscience, at Merck Research Laboratories.
“We are pleased that this collaboration represents a truly innovative and promising new therapeutic approach in the Alzheimer’s disease field,” he added.
O-GlcNAcase may also be instrumental in other disorders and, as part of the deal, Merck has a worldwide, exclusive licence to research, develop and commercialise compounds.
The companies will collaborate on discovery and preclinical work, with Merck responsible for clinical development.
Vancouver-based Alectos, co-founded by Ernest McEachern and David Vocadlo, currently has a number of programmes against novel – but undisclosed – targets in oncology and neurological disease.
“This is an important validation of our scientific leadership in this area and we look forward to working with Merck to realise the full value of this novel mechanism for a range of neuroscience disorders,” says Alectos chief executive McEachern.
Merck has made an upfront payment to Alectos and will bankroll research to include study of Alectos’ existing portfolio of compounds targeting Alzheimer’s.
Alectos will be paid for hitting the usual development and regulatory milestones and will receive royalties from any products that result.
Successful drugs for Alzheimer’s disease remain comparatively rare, with Merck’s developmental drug MK-677 failing to progress in trials a couple of years ago.
Pfizer/Eisai’s Aricept, Novartis’ Exelon, Shire’s Reminyl and Lundbeck’s Ebixa are indicated in the UK for various stages of the disease.
But funding recommendations from NICE have been the source of controversy, with pressure groups regularly claiming that not enough treatments are being approved.
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