Pharmacopeia And GlaxoSmithKline Collaboration Identifies Two Additional Lead Compounds
Pharmacopeia, an innovator in the discovery and development of novel small molecule therapeutics, announced recently that it has identified two new lead compounds for advancement in its alliance with GlaxoSmithKline, through its collaboration with the Center of Excellence for External Drug Discovery (CEEDD). The first of the lead compounds forms the basis of a new lead optimization program focused on identifying a treatment for respiratory disease. The other newly identified lead compound is the second from a program in inflammatory pain. As a result of the identification of these new lead compounds, Pharmacopeia will receive milestone payments totaling $1M from GSK.
Under the terms of the companies' collaboration, Pharmacopeia has received $10M from GSK in connection with early discovery activities and is entitled to an additional $5M payment upon the completion of additional early discovery activities. Pharmacopeia is also entitled to success-based milestone payments totaling up to $83M per program and potentially double-digit royalties on the sales of any product commercialized by GSK under the multi-program alliance. Should GSK decline its option to complete pivotal trials of alliance programs, Pharmacopeia may independently pursue them, subject to its obligations to GSK under the agreement.
"With the identification of these two compounds, our collaboration has now identified a total of three new leads this year," said Hugh Cowley, Senior Vice President of GSK and head of the CEEDD at GSK. "We are extremely pleased to see the continued rapid and impressive achievements of the team driving this successful collaboration."
"Since entering into this collaboration just over 18 months ago, we have advanced multiple programs focusing on compelling targets toward development candidates," said David Floyd, Ph.D., Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer of Pharmacopeia "We are very pleased that progress within the collaboration exceeds our initial estimates and that compounds are coming from multiple programs in multiple therapeutic areas. We're particularly happy to have added a second lead to our ongoing pain program as this significantly increases its chances of overall success."
About The CEEDD
GlaxoSmithKline is enhancing the way it discovers and develops drugs by creating a small dedicated team who will feed the GSK pipeline solely through the efforts of its external alliances. The CEEDD (Center of Excellence for External Drug Discovery) was formed as further validation of GSK's strategy to create small, independent and accountable R&D teams (Centers of Excellence for Drug Discovery or CEDDs). In essence, the CEEDD will 'virtualize' a portion of the GSK pipeline; namely, from Target to Clinical Proof of Concept, by forming multiple risk-sharing/reward-sharing alliances. Capitalizing on the speed and efficiency of its collaborators will allow GSK to deliver pharmaceuticals products faster to patients.
ABOUT PHARMACOPEIA
Pharmacopeia is a clinical development stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel small molecule therapeutics to address significant medical needs. The company has a broad portfolio of clinical and preclinical candidates under development internally or by partners including seven clinical compounds in Phase 2 or Phase 1 development addressing multiple indications including hypertension, diabetic nephropathy, muscle wasting, inflammation and respiratory disease. The company is leveraging its fully integrated drug discovery platform to sustain the growth of its development pipeline. Pharmacopeia has established strategic agreements with major pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including Bristol-Myers Squibb, Cephalon, GlaxoSmithKline, Organon, Schering-Plough, and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. For more information please visit the company's website at www.pharmacopeia.com.
SOURCE: Pharmacopeia