Belgian biopharmaceutical company UCB and Swiss drugmaker Novartis have entered into a collaboration to co-develop and market two drugs targeting Parkinson’s disease (PD).
The first drug, UCB0599 is a small molecule, alpha-synuclein misfolding inhibitor, and the second drug, UCB7853, is an anti-alpha-synuclein antibody.
Under the terms of the collaboration agreement, both parties will jointly develop and fund the clinical development of UCB0599.
Novartis holds the right to opt-in for the co-development of UCB7853 upon completion of the Phase 1 study, currently conducted by UCB.
UCB will receive an upfront payment of $150m from Novartis and is then eligible to receive potential milestone payments totalling around $1.5bn.
Upon the products reaching the marketing stage, UCB will hold the commercialisation rights in Europe and Japan, while Novartis in the US and remaining territories.
UCB executive vice president and chief scientific officer Dhaval Patel said: “This partnership has the potential to be transformational for people living with Parkinson’s disease.
“It will combine UCB’s expertise as a leader in the field of neurodegenerative disease with Novartis’ global capabilities and deep experience developing transformative, disease-modifying treatments for a range of neurological conditions.
“It is a great example of our approach to research and development in neurodegeneration, building external networks and partnerships to access additional capabilities and knowledge, that help to accelerate the development of our medicines.”
UCB is focused on the discovery and development of medicines for severe diseases of the immune system and the central nervous system.
It has obtained the license for developing UCB0599 from Neuropore Therapies.
UCB0599 is an orally administered, brain penetrant, small-molecule inhibitor of alpha-synuclein misfolding, currently under Phase 2 studies to slow the progression of PD.
UCB7853 is an anti-alpha-synuclein monoclonal antibody, currently under Phase 1 programme, for the potential treatment of PD.
According to the company, abnormal accumulation and misfolding of the alpha-synuclein protein is an important neuropathological hallmark of PD.
The misfolding is believed to be a primary step in the pathological cascade that results in the disease progression pathobiology, which results in the loss of neurons.
UCB0599 would act to slow the disease progression and related clinical symptoms, while UCB7853 would target the extracellular spread of alpha-synuclein, said the company.
UCB neurology executive vice president Charl van Zyl said: “It is our long-term ambition to transform the Parkinson’s treatment landscape from the management of symptoms, to treatments that can slow or stop the progression of disease.
“By sharing resources and working together we think we can best optimise our chances of success and realise our Parkinson’s ambitions.”
