Anacor Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Medicis Pharmaceutical Corp. today announced they have entered into a research and development agreement to discover and develop boron-based small molecule compounds directed against a target for the patented, potential treatment of acne.
“We are pleased to announce this important collaboration with Anacor,” Jonah Shacknai, chairman and CEO of Medicis stated in the press release. “Anacor and its scientists are well respected in the scientific community, and Medicis is proud to be among other significant organizations who have partnered with them to explore the pharmaceutical development of the Anacor boron chemistry platform. We will together be working hard to achieve breakthroughs with this proprietary technology in the treatment of acne.”
The agreement calls for Anacor to receive an upfront payment of $7 million from Medicis. Anacor will be eligible for future research, development, regulatory and sales milestones of up to $153 million, as well as high single-digit to low double-digit royalties on sales by Medicis.
Anacor will be primarily responsible for discovering and conducting early development of product candidates utilizing Anacor’s proprietary boron chemistry platform, while Medicis will be responsible for further development and commercialization of the licensed products on a worldwide basis.
Per the agreement, Medicis will have an option to obtain an exclusive license for products covered by the agreement.
Anacor CEO David Perry noted the potential of the collaboration of the two companies’ resources.
“We have demonstrated that boron-based chemistry is productive in creating novel small molecule therapeutics, and we are excited to work with Medicis to apply this technology to the development of a unique, patented treatment for acne,” Perry stated. “With our technology and Medicis’ expertise in developing and commercializing pharmaceuticals, we hope this collaboration will result in innovative products to help the patients who suffer from this condition.”
For more information visit www.anacor.com or www.medicis.com
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