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deCODE forges pharmacogenomics alliance with Merck Related News deCODE up on obesity gene find First gene linked to stroke deCODE sells crystallography platform Winners and losers emerge in genomics industry deCODE starts screening programme in schizophrenia All news for February 2005 All news for January 2005 To freeze animation, right-hand click on 'Play'. 26/02/2004 - Icelandic company deCODE Genetics has entered into a seven-year alliance to conduct pharmacogenomic studies on Merck & Co’s drug candidates using its population genetics database. deCODE, which specialises in unravelling the links between genes and disease, will carry out clinical trials on a range of Merck's developmental compounds, with tests on as many as five products conducted concurrently. The Reykjavik-based company has built up a database of DNA samples from the Icelandic population of just 250,000, along with their medical histories and genealogy. It will use this information to analyse the effect of experimental drugs developed by Merck on different groups of people, in a move designed to complement the US group's in-house clinical trials programme. The hope is that the approach will identify the patients that are most likely to benefit from treatment with a drug, as well as those who may be prone to side effects. Under the terms of the deal, the companies may collaborate on the development of pharmacogenomic tests that can be used to guide treatment choices. The agreement calls for Merck to purchase $10 million of deCODE common stock at a price of $14.50 per share, and the US major has received a warrant to purchase up to $50 million of additional shares of deCODE stock at $29.00 per share over the next five years. In addition, deCODE will receive royalties on sales of any compounds in the alliance that reach the market. Dr Kari Steffanson, deCODE’s chief executive, said that the company would integrate into clinical trials detailed data on many other variables - disease subtypes, biomarkers, genotypes and gene expression patterns - to understand not just whether people respond to drugs, but also who responds best and why. deCODE already has a relationship with Merck, having isolated two new genes under a collaboration with the US drug major last year in a programme aimed at discovering novel drugs for obesity. The genes were identified through population- and genome-wide linkage scans and association analyses of at-risk haplotypes, using data from 17,000 subjects involved in deCODE's obesity program in Iceland. News of the deal sent deCODE’s Nasdaq-listed stock up by 28 per cent to $13.60 in mid-morning trading today. |
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