INGELHEIM, Germany, and
SAN DIEGO, Jan. 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Boehringer
Ingelheim and Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARNA) announced
today that they have signed an exclusive agreement to conduct joint
research to identify drug candidates targeting an undisclosed G
protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), which belongs to the group of
orphan CNS receptors. An "orphan receptor" is structurally related
to a family of proteins that are known to act as functional
cell-surface receptors but whose ligand has not yet been
identified.
Arena will provide Boehringer Ingelheim exclusive rights to its
internally discovered, novel compounds and intellectual property
for an orphan CNS receptor. The companies will jointly conduct
research to identify additional drug candidates that are suitable
for continued research and development as therapeutic compounds for
various disease indications. The agreement grants Boehringer
Ingelheim exclusive worldwide rights to develop, manufacture and
commercialize products resulting from the collaboration.
According to the World Health Organization, mental illness -
together with substance abuse disorders - remains a leading
cause of disability worldwide. At least 450 million people suffer
from mental health problems. The global economic burden of mental
illness is larger than for cancer, cardiovascular disease or
diabetes and continues to grow – with significant health, social
and economic consequences. As currently available treatment options
leave many patients unsatisfactorily treated, more effective
medicines for mental diseases are urgently needed.
"This agreement reflects our new corporate focus to enter into
collaboration opportunities at various stages of development," said
Harry F. Hixson, Jr., Arena's
interim Chief Executive Officer. "Collaborations are an essential
part of our drug discovery and development efforts, so we are
pleased to be part of this shared goal to identify novel drugs
targeting an orphan CNS receptor with Boehringer Ingelheim, who
possesses demonstrated capabilities in research, development,
manufacturing, and marketing of pharmaceutical products."
"Together with our research partners in neuroscience, we are
targeting brain circuits underlying major untreated symptom domains
in our CNS focus areas of Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, and
depression. We are delighted to enter into this new collaboration
with Arena, who have recognized expertise in orphan CNS GPCR drug
discovery and development," said Corporate Senior Vice President
Clive R. Wood, Head of Discovery
Research of Boehringer Ingelheim. "We believe that this alliance
with Arena will allow us to deliver innovative, new medicines for
the treatment of patients with psychiatric diseases such as
schizophrenia and contribute to our vision of helping the millions
of people with mental illness, to live fuller, more independent
lives, for longer."
The new partnership combines Arena's expertise in GPCR focused
drug discovery and development with Boehringer Ingelheim's unique
approach to CNS research and development and its proven
capabilities in bringing novel medications of high therapeutic
value to the market in areas of high unmet medical need.
The collaboration is part of Boehringer Ingelheim's commitment
to researching and developing new and more effective treatments for
psychiatric diseases and their symptoms.
Under the terms of the agreement, Arena is eligible to receive
payments up to $262 million in
success milestones in case of full commercial success of multiple
drug products, including an upfront payment and research funding.
In addition, Arena is eligible to receive tiered royalties on
future sales of products that arise from the collaboration. Further
details of the agreement were not disclosed.
About Boehringer Ingelheim
The Boehringer Ingelheim group is one of the world's 20 leading
pharmaceutical companies. Headquartered in Ingelheim, Germany, Boehringer Ingelheim operates
globally with 146 affiliates and a total of more than 47,700
employees. The focus of the family-owned company, founded in 1885,
is researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing new
medications of high therapeutic value for human and veterinary
medicine.
Social responsibility is an important element of the corporate
culture at Boehringer Ingelheim. This includes worldwide
involvement in social projects, such as the initiative "Making more
Health" and caring for the employees. Respect, equal opportunities
and reconciling career and family form the foundation of the mutual
cooperation. In everything it does, the company focuses on
environmental protection and sustainability.
In 2014, Boehringer Ingelheim achieved net sales of about
13.3 billion euros. R&D
expenditure corresponds to 19.9 per cent of its net sales.
For more information please visit
www.boehringer-ingelheim.com
About Arena Pharmaceuticals
Arena embraces the challenge of improving health by seeking to
bring innovative medicines targeting G protein-coupled receptors to
patients. Arena's focus is discovering, developing and
commercializing drugs to address unmet medical needs, and
BELVIQ® (lorcaserin HCl) is Arena's first internally
discovered drug approved for marketing. Arena has US operations
located in San Diego, California, and operations outside of the
United States, including its
commercial manufacturing facility, located in Zofingen,
Switzerland. For more information,
visit Arena's website at www.arenapharm.com.
Arena Pharmaceuticals® and Arena® are
registered service marks of Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
BELVIQ® is a registered trademark of Arena
Pharmaceuticals GmbH.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking
statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Such
forward-looking statements include statements about the Arena and
Boehringer Ingelheim collaboration, including related rights,
obligations, activities, milestones, payments, and other
expectations; the identification, advancement, therapeutic
indication, marketing approval, commercialization and potential of
compounds under such collaboration; the need for new treatments for
mental diseases and the potential of expected activities under such
collaboration in addressing such need; the importance of
collaborations to Arena's efforts; embracing the challenge of
improving health; seeking to bring innovative medicines to
patients; and Arena's focus, plans, goals, strategy, expectations,
research and development programs, and ability to discover and
develop compounds and commercialize drugs. For such statements,
Arena claims the protection of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Actual events or results may differ materially
from Arena's expectations. Factors that could cause actual results
to differ materially from the forward-looking statements include,
but are not limited to, the following: no compound under the Arena
and Boehringer Ingelheim collaboration may be identified, advanced,
approved for marketing or commercialized for any disease or
condition; having adequate funds and other assets and their
effective use; risks related to commercializing BELVIQ or any
future drug, including regulatory, manufacturing, supply and
marketing issues and their availability and use; the risk that
Arena's revenues are based in part on estimates, judgment and
accounting policies, and incorrect estimates or disagreement
regarding estimates or accounting policies may result in changes to
Arena's guidance or previously reported results; the timing and
outcome of regulatory review is uncertain, and lorcaserin may not
receive any additional marketing approvals; regulatory decisions in
one territory may impact other regulatory decisions and Arena's
business prospects; government and commercial reimbursement and
pricing decisions; risks related to relying on collaborative
arrangements; the timing and receipt of payments and fees, if any,
from collaborators; the entry into or modification or termination
of collaborative arrangements; the timing, success and cost of
Arena's research and development and related strategy and
decisions; results of clinical trials and other studies are subject
to different interpretations and may not be predictive of future
results; clinical trials and other studies may not proceed at the
time or in the manner expected or at all; unexpected or unfavorable
new data; nonclinical and clinical data is voluminous and detailed,
and regulatory agencies may interpret or weigh the importance of
data differently and reach different conclusions than Arena or
others, request additional information, have additional
recommendations or change their guidance or requirements before or
after approval; data and other information related to any of
Arena's research and development may not meet regulatory
requirements or otherwise be sufficient for (or Arena or a
collaborator may not pursue) further research and development,
regulatory review or approval or continued marketing; Arena's and
third parties' intellectual property rights; and satisfactory
resolution of litigation or other disagreements. Additional factors
that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
stated or implied by Arena's forward-looking statements are
disclosed in Arena's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. These forward-looking statements represent Arena's
judgment as of the time of this release. Arena disclaims any intent
or obligation to update these forward-looking statements, other
than as may be required under applicable law.
Contact: Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Craig M. Audet, Ph.D., Senior
Vice President,
Operations and Head of Global Regulatory Affairs
caudet@arenapharm.com
858.453.7200, ext. 1612
www.arenapharm.com
Contacts: Boehringer-Ingelheim
Julia Meyer-Kleinmann/ Dr.
Reinhard Malin
Boehringer Ingelheim
Corporate Communications
Ingelheim, Germany
Email: m-kleinmann@boehringer-ingelheim.com /
reinhard.malin@boehringer-ingelheim.com
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SOURCE Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc.