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BTG ESTABLISHES COLLABORATION AGREEMENT WITH COLLEGIUM PHARMACEUTICAL TO DEVELOP INNOVATIVE THERAPY FOR SLEEP APNOEA
BTG, the intellectual property and technology commercialisation company, announced today that it has entered into a Collaboration Agreement with Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc., to develop novel formulations of its combination drug therapy currently being developed for the treatment of sleep apnoea. Collegium will employ its expertise in product development, including its suite of proprietary formulation technologies, with the goal of establishing a broadly patented single product with optimal properties for the treatment of this sleep-related breathing disorder. The Collaboration Agreement provides for a development programme that will be funded by BTG, as well as a revenue sharing arrangement between the parties. The intent of this Collaboration Agreement is for the sleep apnoea project to be the first of additional co-development programmes between the companies. Sleep apnoea is a serious respiratory disorder that involves cessation of breathing for prolonged intervals during sleep. It is estimated that 10-20 million people in Europe suffer from apnoea, which has been linked to increased risk for hypertension, heart failure, depression and diabetes. Sleep apnoea is thought to be as common a disease as adult diabetes. Currently, there are no approved pharmacological therapies to treat sleep apnoea. The novel therapy being developed by BTG and Collegium is comprised of a combination of two drugs that are currently approved and in use to treat indications that are unrelated to sleep apnoea.The basis for this therapeutic approach is work from noted sleep researchers Drs David Carley and Miodrag Radulovacki at the University of Illinois at Chicago who have demonstrated that modulation of specific neurotransmitters significantly reduces sleep apnoea in both preclinical and clinical studies. “BTG is extremely pleased to be working with Collegium on the sleep apnoea therapeutic project. They bring tremendous value and expertise to the programme, and based on their exceptional track record of success, we believe that we will be able to accelerate the development of this very promising therapeutic approach to treat this serious disorder,” said Thomas Logan, Ph.D., Vice President of BTG’s BioPharmaceuticals Business Unit. “BTG is building a portfolio of development programmes that involve new uses for existing drugs and drug combinations. We believe that BTG’s intellectual property expertise, coupled with Collegium’s product development expertise, represents an ideal partnership.” “Sleep apnoea is a largely unrecognised and untreated illness with many adverse health consequences. We are excited about the possibilities of this therapy that we are developing with BTG. They have an excellent track record of identifying, developing and licensing technologies with high commercial potential, and we believe that the combination of both companies provides for tremendous synergy on this project,” said Michael Heffernan RPh, President of Collegium.
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