On November 2, 2015 Merck, a leading science and technology company, reported that it has entered into a three-year collaboration to validate new therapeutic concepts in the field of oncology with Selvita, headquartered in Krakow, Poland (Press release, Merck KGaA, NOV 2, 2015, View Source [SID:1234507882]). Financial details were not disclosed. Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo! The aim of the collaboration is to deliver potential first-in-class small molecules as lead candidate drugs for multiple oncology indications. Both companies will contribute funding and resources to support the collaboration, as well as bring their
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"We are excited about our new collaboration with Selvita, which will afford us the opportunity to build upon our collective efforts of the last two years," said Andree Blaukat, Head of the Translational Innovation Platform Oncology at Merck. "Our shared success from our previous collaboration has led to strong progress in the area of cancer metabolism. Together, we remain focused on bringing innovative new therapeutic options to patients that have the potential to make a substantial difference in their lives."
This collaboration will steer a joined portfolio of discovery projects in a risk/reward sharing model and builds on the framework that the two companies have developed during a two-year partnership in cancer metabolism, which began in 2013.
Under the terms of the new agreement, Merck will have an exclusive license to the joint intellectual property and Selvita will receive milestone payments and royalties upon successful development and commercialization of products by Merck. The
collaboration consists of a joint research phase up to lead identification, after which Merck will further research and develop the projects on its own.
Krzysztof Brzozka, Selvita Chief Scientific Officer, added: "Collaboration between Merck and Selvita is an excellent example of a successful joint drug discovery platform where both parties contribute their expertise to identify and validate novel therapeutic targets, in parallel developing new compounds and advancing them towards clinical development. This sort of deep and intensive type of collaboration is at the core of Selvita’s vision of modern drug discovery."