Press release
Jun 29, 2017

Sosei Subsidiary Heptares and PeptiDream Enter Strategic Collaboration to Discover, Develop & Commercialise Novel Therapeutics in Inflammatory Disease


Tokyo, Japan –29 June 2017: Sosei Group Corporation (“Sosei”; TSE Mothers Index: 4565) today reports that Heptares Therapeutics (“Heptares”), its wholly-owned subsidiary, and PeptiDream Inc., a public Tokyo-based biopharmaceutical company (“PeptiDream”; TOKYO: 4587), have entered into a strategic collaboration to discover, develop and commercialise novel therapeutics targeting an undisclosed G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) with an important role in inflammatory diseases.

 

The collaboration brings together two industry leading drug discovery platforms and considerable preclinical and clinical development capabilities. Heptares will apply its StaR® platform and resulting 3D structural insights to the GPCR target selected by both companies. PeptiDream will use its proprietary Peptide Discovery Platform System (PDPS) technology to identify macrocyclic/constrained peptides against the target GPCR and to optimize hit peptides and/or small molecules for further development. Promising leads will be progressed using the partners’ complementary skills, resources and development capabilities in order to bring innovative products into the clinic. Under the agreement, the companies will jointly conduct and share the costs of the discovery and development programme, and will co-own any resulting products. No further financial details are disclosed.

Malcolm Weir, CEO at Heptares and Chief R&D Officer at Sosei, said: “In bringing together Heptares and PeptiDream technologies under this collaboration, we hope to create a powerful approach to drug discovery and development focused on the selected target. Collaborations to access world-leading technologies that complement and enhance our own capabilities form an important element of our strategy to discover, develop and commercialise a highly valuable pipeline of new biologic products.”

Kiichi Kubota, CEO and President of PeptiDream Inc., said: “We are delighted to be teaming up with Heptares and their world-leading GPCR targeted technologies, with the goal of jointly discovering and developing first-in-class therapeutics against this important target. This strategic collaboration provides another opportunity for PeptiDream to partner with a world-class company like Heptares to mutually leverage our technologies and further accelerate our expanding strategic/internal pipeline.” 


 DOWNLOAD PDF