SOUTH PLAINFIELD, N.J. and PALO ALTO, Calif., June 12 /PRNewswire/ --
PTC Therapeutics, Inc. and CV Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: CVTX) announced
today that they have entered into an exclusive research collaboration and
licensing arrangement for the development of orally bioavailable small
molecules through the application of PTC's proprietary GEMS (Gene
Expression Modulation by Small-Molecules) technology. Pursuant to the
collaboration, PTC and CV Therapeutics will jointly select five targets,
including targets with the potential to raise HDL, through a collaborative
process of determining the applicability of the GEMS technology to targets
of interest.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20010919/PTCLOGO )
Under the terms of the collaboration and license agreement, CV
Therapeutics will make an initial payment to PTC of $10 million. The
initial payment consists of a cash upfront payment of $2 million and two
loans for an aggregate of $8 million. One of the loans is forgivable over
the course of the research term provided the agreement remains in effect,
and the other is convertible into PTC equity. CV Therapeutics has the
exclusive option to enter into one or more worldwide, exclusive licenses,
on a target-by-target basis, for collaboration compounds it decides to take
forward, and will be obligated to pay PTC royalties on worldwide net sales
of products developed pursuant to the collaboration. If CV Therapeutics
licenses and commercializes a product based on each of the five selected
targets during the term of the agreement, PTC could earn milestone payments
of up to $335 million if all specified development, regulatory and
commercial goals are achieved over the product life cycle. PTC retains the
option to co-fund research and development for increased royalties or
co-promotion rights.
"We are very excited to start our collaboration with PTC, which we
believe has the potential to deliver innovative oral treatments for
well-validated targets in important areas of cardiovascular disease, such
as dyslipidemia and diabetes," said Brent K. Blackburn, Ph.D., senior vice
president, drug discovery and development of CV Therapeutics. "This
alliance complements our internal research efforts with PTC's proprietary
GEMS technology that allows the potential development of small-molecule
drugs to address challenging targets."
"We are extremely pleased to enter into this collaboration with CV
Therapeutics," said Stuart Peltz, president and chief executive officer of
PTC Therapeutics. "This collaboration is part of our strategy of applying
our GEMS technology to therapeutic areas outside of our core research areas
through collaborators who bring disease-specific expertise. With CV
Therapeutics, we have a collaborator with a significant presence and
experience in molecular cardiology and drug development."
About CV Therapeutics
CV Therapeutics, Inc., headquartered in Palo Alto, California, is a
biopharmaceutical company focused on applying molecular cardiology to the
discovery, development and commercialization of novel, small molecule drugs
for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.
CV Therapeutics' approved products include Ranexa(R) (ranolazine
extended-release tablets) and ACEON(R) (perindopril erbumine) Tablets.
Ranexa is indicated for the treatment of chronic angina in patients who
have not achieved an adequate response with other antianginal drugs, and
should be used in combination with amlodipine, beta-blockers or nitrates.
In addition, CV Therapeutics co-promotes ACEON(R), an ACE inhibitor, for
reduction of the risk of cardiovascular mortality or nonfatal myocardial
infarction in patients with stable coronary artery disease and treatment of
essential hypertension.
CV Therapeutics also has other clinical and preclinical drug
development candidates and programs, including regadenoson, which is being
developed for potential use as a pharmacologic stress agent in myocardial
perfusion imaging studies. Regadenoson has not been approved for marketing
by any regulatory authorities.
CV Therapeutics Disclosure Statement
Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set
forth in this press release, including statements as to drug research and
development, clinical studies, regulatory review and approval, and
commercialization of products, are forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject
to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ
materially, including, early stage of development; regulatory review and
approval of our products; the conduct and timing of clinical trials;
commercialization of products; market acceptance of products; and other
risks detailed from time to time in CV Therapeutics' SEC reports, including
its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2006. CV
Therapeutics disclaims any intent or obligation to update these
forward-looking statements.
About PTC
PTC is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and
development of orally administered, proprietary small-molecule drugs that
target post-transcriptional control processes. Post-transcriptional control
processes regulate the rate and timing of protein production and are of
central importance to proper cellular function. PTC has assembled
proprietary technologies and extensive knowledge of post-transcriptional
control processes that it applies in its drug discovery and development
activities. PTC's current pipeline of clinical and preclinical product
candidates addresses multiple indications, including genetic disorders,
oncology, and infectious diseases.
About GEMS
Gene Expression Modulation by Small-molecules (GEMS) is PTC's novel and
proprietary screening technology for the identification of small-molecules
that modulate post-transcriptional control mechanisms. Compounds identified
through the GEMS technology modulate gene expression by targeting the
post-transcriptional control processes that act through the untranslated
regions (UTRs) of messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules. GEMS was the basis for
the discovery of PTC's product candidate, PTC299 and also for compounds in
PTC's Hepatitis C virus program. PTC is using GEMS in multiple ongoing drug
discovery programs.
SOURCE PTC Therapeutics, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.ptcbio.com
Photo Notes:
NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20010919/PTCLOGO
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
CONTACT:
Investor: Christopher Chai, Vice President,
Treasury and Investor Relations CV Therapeutics, Inc.
+1-650-384-8560; or Media: John Bluth, Senior Director, Corporate
Communications of CV Therapeutics, Inc., +1-650-384-8850; or Jane
Baj, Associate Director, Corporate Development of PTC
Therapeutics, Inc., +1-908-222-7000 x167
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