Pfizer Inks Deal With FivePrime For Oncology, Diabetes Compounds
This article was originally published in The Pink Sheet Daily
Executive Summary
Collaboration, to be managed by Pfizer's San Francisco-based biotech center, provides pharma giant with antibody targets.
|
Pfizer is shoring up the portfolio for its newly created, San Francisco-based Biotherapeutics and Bioinnovation Center via an oncology and diabetes-focused collaboration with protein therapeutics company FivePrime. The collaboration "will fill a core need for Pfizer's new biologics enterprise," BBC President Corey Goodman said May 20. "Our mission is to gain access to the best internal and external science and to achieve Pfizer's corporate ambition of becoming a global leader in biotherapeutics." "The investment and partnership with FivePrime represents a key milestone in our efforts as we are confident it will generate therapeutic proteins and antibodies that will ultimately lead to innovative medicines for patients worldwide." Pfizer unveiled the standalone bioinnovation center, which it describes as a "federation" of biotech research units, last fall (1 (Also see "Pfizer Unveils New San Francisco-Based Biotech Center, R&D Leaders" - Pink Sheet, 4 Oct, 2007.)). "FivePrime's comprehensive antibody and protein discovery platform is a perfect source of innovative targets for use with [Pfizer's] biotherapeutic generation technologies," FivePrime CEO Gail Maderis explained. "Pfizer has a number of technologies for creating biotherapeutics, including antibody generation and CovX bodies; they need targets." As part of the agreement, FivePrime will screen its protein library in both cell-based assays and primary in vivo screens directed toward finding potential therapeutic protein products and antibody targets. Pfizer will provide the privately held San Francisco-based company with an upfront payment and equity investment, plus three years of research funding. In exchange for future royalties and milestones, Pfizer will have worldwide rights to certain products and targets discovered during the research term. Specific financial details were not disclosed. In conjunction with Pfizer's equity purchase, FivePrime's earlier backers made a co-investment in the firm. The agreement "provides the financial runway to take several of our oncology products into clinical trials in addition to greatly expanding our discovery efforts," Maderis said. "The majority of the total funding is non-dilutive," she added. The company's lead compound, oncologic FP-1039, is expected to enter Phase I this year; Maderis said an IND would be filed in the second quarter. The firm's pipeline also includes preclinical type 2 diabetes candidate FP-1038. Neither is included in the Pfizer deal. FivePrime entered a research and development deal with Johnson & Johnson/Centocor in 2007 for osteoarthritis and pulmonary fibrosis (2 (Also see "Centocor/Five Prime Deal Targets Protein Therapeutics For Osteoarthritis, Pulmonary Fibrosis" - Pink Sheet, 3 Jan, 2007.)). -Brooke McManus ([email protected]) |