Cellzome extends J&J Alzheimer's collaboration
This article was originally published in Scrip
Executive Summary
The private drug discovery company Cellzome has extended its Alzheimer's disease collaboration with Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals and its affiliate Johnson & Johnson Pharmacetical Research & Developmentfor a further two years until March 2010. The collaboration has also been expanded to include an additional research programme in which Cellzome will map the Tau pathway which has been implicated in Alzheimer's and is a new avenue for drug discovery in the disease. The companies' two current research programmes target gamma secretase modulators and the amyloid precursor protein (APP) pathway - two more advanced areas of research for disease-modifying drugs against Alzheimer's. Under the latest agreement, Ortho-McNeil-Janssen has exclusive rights to the intellectual property on compounds chosen for development and commercialisation, and in exchange, Cellzome will receive a technology access fee and research support, as well as milestones and royalties on sales. No financial details were disclosed.