Japan's Sosei allies with ex-Novartis team to develop neurological drug pipeline

Nxera Pharma

02/11/2020 12:00

By Rocky Swift
    TOKYO, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Japan's Sosei Group Corp  4565.T 
said on Monday it is allying with a U.S. biotech run by former
Novartis AG  NOVN.S  executives to commercialise a neurological
drug pipeline. 
    Sosei declined to specify the deal size, but Senior Vice
President Hironoshin Nomura said it could be similar to previous
contracts with AstraZeneca Plc  AZN.L  and Teva Pharmaceutical
Industries Ltd  TEVA.TA  that were in the $500 million range.
    Sosei will join with Aditum Bio to form a new company named
Tempero Bio to develop a drug pipeline from the compound known
as HTL0014242, the companies said in a release. The drug is a
selective mGlu5 negative allosteric modulator (NAM) and is now
in phase 1 trials in the United States for the treatment of
anxiety and substance abuse disorders. 
    Oakland, California-based Aditum is headed by ex-Novartis
CEO Joe Jimenez and Mark Fishman, the founding president at the
Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research.
    The partnership represents a new tack for Sosei, which
typically does research and development for larger pharma
companies in exchange for fees and royalties.
    As the drug goes through trials and regulatory review, Sosei
will seek to exit the investment by listing Tempero Bio or
selling it off, Nomura said. 
    "We think the value of this pipeline programme is very
high," Nomura said. "That's why we are taking the risk."

 (Reporting by Rocky Swift in Tokyo)
 ((rocky.swift@thomsonreuters.com))