Psylin Neurosciences Will Focus On Development of Psychiatric Drugs
This article was originally published in The Pink Sheet Daily
Executive Summary
New company is formed out of a joint venture between Amylin and PsychoGenics.
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Amylin Pharmaceuticals and PsychoGenics have formed a new company, Psylin Neurosciences, to focus on the discovery and development of peptide hormones for the treatment of psychiatric drugs, the two companies announced Jan. 30. Psylin will have access to molecules in Amylin's proprietary polypeptide hormone library, known as Phormol , and to PsychoGenics drug discovery technologies, according to the firms. "In terms of development purposes, this is a way of continuing development compounds without averting any company strategies," PsychoGenics VP-Business Development David Pushett said of the companies' decision to create a new third-party firm rather than collaborate through the two existing ones. He told "The Pink Sheet" DAILY that the companies will focus on developing a number of drug candidates in several areas. "One of the main novelties of the technology we have is we can focus on different areas of psychiatry at once," Pushett said. PsychoGenics' technology combines in vivo behavioral experience with recent developments in robotics, computer vision and bio/cheminformatics to evaluate drug candidates with potential across the spectrum of neuroscience disease indications, according to the firm. PsychoGenics and Amylin participated equally in financing Psylin at levels the companies expect will fund the company for two years. PsychoGenics' drug discovery is focused on disorders like ALS, anxiety, cognitive impairment, depression, Huntington's disease and psychosis/schizophrenia. The company most recently signed an agreement with Lilly in December to use its proprietary technology to evaluate drug candidates provided by Lilly for the development of neuropsychiatric disorders. Amylin is also partnered with Lilly on the development and commercialization of the type 2 diabetes drug Byetta (exenatide), which recently gained a new indication as adjunctive therapy with thiazolidinediones (1 (Also see "Amylin To Celebrate New Year With New Byetta Claim For Use With TZDs" - Pink Sheet, 27 Dec, 2006.)). For Amylin, the development of Psylin with an emphasis on psychiatric disorders represents a move away from its existing therapeutic focus. The firm's portfolio and pipeline is largely in diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular areas. - Jessica Merrill ([email protected]) |