GlaxoSmithKline, Galapagos to collaborate on osteoarthritis drugs

By E. Janene Geiss

Philadelphia, June 7 - GlaxoSmithKline and Galapagos NV announced Wednesday the creation of a worldwide, multi-year, multi-program drug discovery and development alliance in the field of osteoarthritis.

GlaxoSmithKline, through its recently established Center of Excellence for External Drug Discovery, and Galapagos will collaborate to deliver disease modifying drugs with clinical proof-of-concept to Glaxo's global research and development organization, according to a company news release.

This alliance builds upon Galapagos' internal target and drug discovery programs in osteoarthritis.

The aim of this turn-key agreement is for Galapagos to expand its portfolio of novel validated targets in the field of osteoarthritis, to conduct compound screening, identify tractable hits, pursue a number of hit-to-lead programs and develop the resulting leads into candidate-selection compounds through to a successful proof-of-concept in clinical research phase 2a, officials said.

GlaxoSmithKline said it will have exclusive options to further develop and commercialize these compounds on a worldwide basis.

Galapagos said it will have the right to further develop and commercialize compounds for which Glaxo does not exercise its option. Galapagos said it will contract a substantial part of the activities to its service division, BioFocus.

The focus of the alliance's efforts will be on delivering disease-modifying drugs for osteoarthritis to GlaxoSmithKline's global research and development organization.

The overall strategy will be to identify genes that stimulate anabolic repair processes (chondrogenesis) and inhibit catabolic activity in affected joints.

Under the agreement, Galapagos said it will receive an upfront technology access fee of €4 million from GlaxoSmithKline.

Upon successful completion of all agreed alliance program criteria, Galapagos said it stands to receive up to €65 million in success-based milestones for a successful drug development program.

In addition, Galapagos said it will receive up to double-digit royalties on commercial sales of alliance products.

Further to the agreement, on the realization of a defined future milestone, GlaxoSmithKline said it will make an equity investment of up to €3 million in Galapagos.

Galapagos said it has ongoing osteoarthritis research programs and focuses on chondrocytes, which are the main cell types in cartilage. These programs will be the basis of the alliance with GlaxoSmithKline.

Galapagos said it has identified 11 novel targets to date that have been validated in cellular disease models. It has progressed three of these into drug discovery and has begun a hit-to-lead program on its most advanced target.

Modulation of these targets in human chondrocytes should lead to a net production of stable cartilage and should therefore be able to prevent and repair damage to this cartilage in patients, officials said.

GlaxoSmithKline is a London research-based pharmaceutical and health care company.

Galapagos is a Brussels, Belgium, genomics-based drug discovery company.

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