Sanofi buys in new diabetes drug
pharmafile | November 6, 2015 | News story | Medical Communications, Research and Development, Sales and Marketing | Lexicon Pharma, SGLT2, SGLT2 inhibitors, Sanofi, sotagliflozin
Sanofi has paid an initial $300 million for collaboration and license agreement to develop sotagliflozin, one of a newer class of diabetes drug.
Sotagliflozin is an investigational new oral dual inhibitor of sodium-glucose cotransporters 1 and 2 (SGLT-1 and SGLT-2), which could be a potential treatment option for people with diabetes. Other drugs available in this class include AstraZeneca’s Forxiga (dapagliflozin), Boehinger Ingelheim and Lilly’s Jardiance (empagliflozin) and Johnson & Johnson’s Invokana (canagliflozin).
In a meeting with investors to set out the company’s five-year strategy, Sanofi chief executive Olivier Brandicourt said the company is “seeking external opportunities to enhance its growth profile.”
It seems Sanofi has already moved to implement this phase of the plan. Under the terms of the agreement, Sanofi will pay an upfront payment of $300 million and is eligible to receive development, regulatory and sales milestone payments of up to $1.4 billion. Lexicon is also entitled to tiered, escalating double digit percentage royalties of net sales of sotagliflozin.
For this outlay, Sanofi will obtain an exclusive worldwide license to develop, manufacture and commercialise sotagliflozin. However Lexicon will continue to be responsible for all clinical development activities relating to type 1 diabetes and will retain an exclusive option to co-promote and have a significant role, in collaboration with Sanofi, in the commercialisation of sotagliflozin for the treatment of type 1 diabetes in the United States.
Sanofi will be responsible for all clinical development and commercialisation activities of sotagliflozin for the treatment of type 2 diabetes worldwide and will be solely responsible for the commercialisation of sotagliflozin for the treatment of type 1 diabetes outside the United States. Lexicon will share in the funding of a portion of the planned type 2 diabetes development costs over the next three years, up to an aggregate of $100 million.
“This agreement with Lexicon reinforces our commitment to helping people living with diabetes,” says Pascale Witz, executive vice president of Sanofi who leads the global diabetes and cardiovascular care business unit. “Adding sotagliflozin to our portfolio, which includes medicines at virtually every stage of the treatment pathway, highlights our focus on providing a large and diverse set of therapeutic options for people with this disease.”
While Lexicon president and chief executive Lonnel Coats says: “Lexicon firmly believes in the potential of sotagliflozin for patients living with diabetes. It has been our strategy to focus our resources on the development of sotagliflozin for type 1 diabetes and to pursue a strategic partnership with respect to type 2 diabetes only if it would strengthen stakeholder value under a fully integrated diabetes program. We believe this arrangement with Sanofi achieves that objective.”
Lilian Anekwe
Related Content
Sanofi and Regeneron’s Dupixent receives CHMP recommendation for chronic spontaneous urticaria
Sanofi and Regeneron have received a positive opinion from the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) Committee …
Sanofi’s treatment granted orphan designation for rare chronic inflammatory condition
The European Medicines Agency has granted orphan designation to Sanofi’s investigational Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) …
Sanofi completes acquisition of Vigil Neuroscience to early neurology pipeline
Sanofi has announced that it has finalised its acquisition of Vigil Neuroscience, a US-based biotechnology …
