Astex Pharmaceuticals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Otsuka Pharmaceutical, has entered into an exclusive worldwide research collaboration and licensing agreement with Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, to develop novel small molecule therapies for breast cancer.

Under the agreement, Astex will grant Genentech an exclusive global license to compounds from its existing breast cancer drug discovery programme. The two companies will work together to further optimise and advance lead compounds with selective inhibitory activity, with the objective of identifying preclinical development candidates for the treatment of breast cancer.

Following the collaborative research phase, Genentech will assume sole responsibility for the preclinical and clinical development, regulatory activities and worldwide commercialisation of any medicines arising from the partnership.

As part of the agreement, Astex will receive an upfront payment of USD 25 million and will be eligible to earn additional milestone payments tied to preclinical, clinical, regulatory and commercial achievements. The total potential value of these milestone payments exceeds USD 490 million, in addition to tiered royalties on future net sales of products developed through the collaboration.

The breast cancer discovery programme originated from an earlier collaborative research initiative under Astex's strategic alliance with Newcastle University and Cancer Research Horizons, leveraging the company's fragment-based drug discovery platform to identify innovative therapeutic targets.

Michelle Jones, President of Astex Pharmaceuticals, said the collaboration builds on the company's scientific expertise and long-standing partnership with Newcastle University. She noted that Astex's fragment-based drug discovery capabilities had enabled the identification of a novel approach to selectively inhibit an important oncology target for breast cancer treatment. Jones added that Genentech's experience in oncology research and commitment to developing innovative therapies for breast cancer patients made it an ideal partner to accelerate the programme into clinical development.

Boris L. Zaïtra, Head of Roche Corporate Business Development, said the collaboration reflects the company's commitment to advancing scientific innovation and developing precision medicines for patients with breast cancer. He added that partnering with Astex on therapies targeting cell-cycle regulators aligns with Roche's strategy of focusing research efforts on areas with significant unmet medical needs.

Astex Pharmaceuticals focuses on the discovery and development of novel small molecule therapeutics for cancer and central nervous system disorders. In addition to its proprietary research pipeline, the company has multiple partnered programmes that are either commercially approved or under development through collaborations with global pharmaceutical companies.