Im surprised no one posted this news today:
P&G And Regeneron Form 10-Year Research
Collaboration to Discover, Develop Pharmaceutical
Products
CINCINNATI, and TARRYTOWN, N.Y., May 13 /PRNewswire/ -- The Procter & Gamble
Company (NYSE:PG) and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:REGN) signed a
10-year agreement to discover, develop and commercialize pharmaceutical products.
Over the first five years of the agreement, P&G will provide $135 million to support
Regeneron and its research programs. In the second five years, the companies have
the opportunity to continue to collaborate, and will equally share all related research
expenses. This agreement is effective immediately, pending routine clearance by
government authorities.
Over the first five years of the agreement, P&G will purchase up to $60 million in
Regeneron equity and provide $75 million in support of Regeneron's research efforts
related to the collaboration. This is in addition to $20 million in research funding to
Regeneron to be provided by P&G as part of an agreement announced in December,
1996 to develop drugs for skeletal muscle injury and atrophy.
In return, P&G will have rights to Regeneron's current technology which is expected to
have application in cardiovascular, bone, muscle, arthritis and other disease areas.
P&G also will have rights to new technology developed as a result of the collaboration.
The companies will jointly develop and market worldwide products resulting from the
collaboration and share equally in profits.
``Regeneron is considered one of the premier pharmaceutical discovery organizations
in the world, and we're very excited to broaden our work with their outstanding scientific
team,'' said Bruce L. Byrnes, president of P&G's health care business. ``By combining
Regeneron's programs in molecular biology with our own efforts, we'll increase the
depth of our pharmaceuticals pipeline in our key focus areas, and bring more products
to market long-term.''
Leonard S. Schleifer, M.D., Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Regeneron,
added, ``We are delighted that P&G has chosen Regeneron to develop and
commercialize our biotechnology-based research. The resources P&G is investing in
Regeneron's research will accelerate our efforts to develop new drugs from our current
research and increase our ability to discover new approaches to treating a variety of
diseases, ranging from muscle atrophy to vascular disease.''
In addition, P. Roy Vagelos, M.D., chairman of Regeneron, said, ``This collaboration
creates a unique synergy by combining Regeneron's cutting-edge expertise in
biotechnology with P&G's expertise in medicinal chemistry and drug development.''
This new collaboration also will include all Regeneron research programs currently
underway except Regeneron's neurotrophic factors and cytokine research programs,
which will continue to be developed independent of the P&G collaboration. Regeneron
has separate agreements with Amgen Inc., Glaxo- Wellcome plc, Medtronic, Inc.,
Pharmacopeia, Inc. and Sumitomo Pharmaceuticals Company, Ltd. for specific areas
not covered by the agreement with P&G.
Collaboration Agreement Terms
Under the terms of the agreement, P&G will conduct research and development
activities in support of the collaboration. In addition, P&G's research support and equity
purchases are expected to provide funding for Regeneron research activities through
the first five years of the agreement. In the second five years, all research costs will be
shared equally. Clinical testing and commercialization expenses will be shared equally
throughout the 10 years of the collaboration.
P&G will initially purchase 4.35 million shares of Regeneron common stock for about
$43 million at $9.87 per share and receive five year warrants to purchase an additional
1.35 million shares at $9.87 per share. Also, P&G has agreed to limit its ownership of
Regeneron's outstanding equity to a maximum of 20%. Subject to this limitation, P&G
will purchase up to an additional $17 million in Regeneron equity during the first five
years and further amounts of equity in the second five years.
Each party has the unilateral right to terminate the collaboration in 2002, or in the event
of default or material breach.
Background information: P&G, Regeneron
In prescription drugs, P&G is focusing on cardiovascular and musculoskeletal health, as
well as anti-infective therapies. In over-the- counter health care, P&G's leading brands
include Metamucil(R), Pepto-Bismol(R), Crest(R), Scope(R) and the Vicks(R) line of
cold/flu/cough and allergy medicines. P&G also is actively partnering with a range of
leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to develop and market innovative
therapies. P&G had sales of $35 billion in fiscal 1995-96.
Regeneron is a leader in the application of molecular and cell biology to identify novel
potential therapeutics for human medical conditions. The company is applying its
expertise in protein growth factors, their receptors, and their mechanisms of action to
the discovery and development of neurotrophic factors for the potential treatment of
neurodegenerative diseases, peripheral neuropathies and nerve injury.
In 1996, based on breakthrough research conducted by its scientists, Regeneron
announced that it has extended its focus to encompass preclinical programs aimed at
identifying treatments for diseases and conditions outside of the nervous system. The
company's discoveries in these areas have included a family of proteins called
angiopoietins, which can both enhance and inhibit blood vessel growth and therefore
may have implications in the treatment of ischemia and in inhibiting tumor growth.
Regeneron's discovery of MuSK, a muscle-specific receptor expressed on the surface
of injured or inactive muscles, may lead to treatments for muscle injury, atrophy and
disease. The company also is studying Noggin, a protein that may block abnormal bone
growth related to burns, spinal trauma or hip replacement surgery.
This news release discusses historical information and includes forward looking
statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties regarding the discovery,
development and commercialization of potential drug candidates by P&G and
Regeneron. These include, among other things, risks and uncertainties associated with
the discovery and preclinical and clinical development of drugs and biologics (and the
potential for the collaboration to be canceled or to terminate without any product
success); determinations by regulatory and administrative governmental authorities;
competitive factors; technological developments; costs of discovering, developing,
producing and selling products; intellectual property matters; and the risk factors listed
or described from time to time in Regeneron's and P&G's filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, including their reports on Form 10-K for their current fiscal
years and on Form 10-Q for the most recent quarterly period for which such forms were
required to be filed. |
