Pharmaceutical companies Lundbeck and Otsuka have formed a global alliance to deliver up to five new psychiatric and neuroscience drugs.

The Danish and Japanese pharma companies, both of which have a strong record in CNS products, have signed a sales and cost share agreement.

The alliance covers two near-term projects from Otsuka and an earlier-stage portfolio of psychiatric disorder treatments, encompassing psychotic, mood and behavioural disorders at all levels of severity, from Lundbeck.

The two companies have identified psychiatric disorders as a major area of unmet need.

Lundbeck is granted co-development and co-commercialisation rights to two Otsuka drugs: aripiprazole depot formulation (which improves compliance in users of the drug) and OPC-34712 (for schizophrenia and major depressive disorder).

Otsuka will have an option to co-develop and co-commercialise up to three early-stage compounds in Lundbeck’s R&D pipeline.

“With the addition of aripiprazole depot formulation and OPC-34712, Lundbeck has significantly broadened its growing psychiatry portfolio with exciting and unique treatments in an area of high unmet needs,” said Ulf Wiinberg, Lundbeck’s President and CEO.

“This collaboration further strengthens our US platform and allows us to be introduced with the US psychiatry community already in 2013."

Dr. Taro Iwamoto, President and Representative Director, Otsuka, commented: “We are very excited that Otsuka and Lundbeck have entered into a co-development and co-commercialisation agreement for aripiprazole depot formulation and OPC-34712, both potential key drivers of future growth for Otsuka’s CNS business.

“Lundbeck’s expertise in developing depression and anxiety treatments and Otsuka’s expertise in developing anti-psychotics will maximise the medical and commercial value of Otsuka’s portfolio in CNS. In addition, our partnership with Lundbeck will enable us to establish a strong platform to deliver these compounds to patients who need them.”

Through the sales and cost share agreement, Otsuka will receive up to US$1.8 billion from Lundbeck – which will see its psychiatry portfolio and US market penetration increase.

The combination of Otsuka’s strong presence in North America and Asia with Lundbeck’s strong presence in Europe, Canada and Latin America mean that the alliance will reach most of the global psychiatric market.

Bristol-Myers Squibb has entered into a strategic partnership with Singapore-based ASLAN Pharmaceuticals for the licensing and development of one of its investigational oncology compounds.

Under the agreement, ASLAN has the rights to develop and commercialise BMS-777607, a small molecule inhibitor of the MET receptor tyrosine kinase for treatment of solid tumours, in China, Australia, Korea, Taiwan and other selected Asian countries. BMS will retain rights for the rest of the world.

ASLAN will also complete and fund the development of the compound under a pre-agreed programme that will initially target gastric and lung cancers.

Francis Cuss, Senior Vice President, Research, BMS, says the agreement is part of the company’s “Oyster strategy” which aims to produce “high-quality data that may be used to further develop and commercialise the medicine worldwide”.

“As part of our biopharma strategy, Bristol-Myers Squibb seeks to seed companies in key markets with promising investigational medicines of continued interest to Bristol-Myers Squibb,” he said.

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company has acquired Nycomed in a deal worth €9.6 million on a cash-free, debt-free basis.

The combined company will be commercially active in the therapeutic areas of metabolic diseases, gastroenterology, oncology, cardiovascular health, CNS diseases, inflammatory and immune disorders, respiratory diseases and pain management.

Current Takeda Executive Vice President of International Operations, Dr Frank Morich, has been appointed as CEO of Nycomed.

Yasuchika Hasegawa, President and CEO of Takeda, said: “Partnering the two organisations will have complementary effects and further increase our potential to become a truly global pharmaceutical company.”

Dr Morich said that the combined company’s pharmaceutical market will cover more than 70 countries, with a presence in Japan, North America, Europe and Asia.

“I look forward to bringing Takeda and Nycomed together to ensure we can achieve enhanced revenue, growth and diversification, while maintaining the strong momentum of both companies,” he said.