Wednesday September 29, 8:08 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Millennium and Bayer Achieve Significant Progess in
Major Research Alliance
18 Drug Targets Identified, Four Moved into Screening - Strides Made to Industrialize Drug
Discovery Process -
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Sept. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MLNM - news) and Bayer
AG, Leverkusen (Germany) today announced that they have successfully identified 18 novel drug targets and moved four of
them into high throughput screening in less than eight months. The alliance has successfully achieved this progress through its
efforts to industrialize the drug discovery process by employing a new model to rapidly identify, validate and screen ''drug
targets.'' The targets were identified and validated by Millennium and are being screened by Bayer.
The alliance is pursuing a novel production-oriented approach, based on genomics research, to rapidly move compounds
toward clinical trials. Millennium integrates large-scale genetics, genomics, automation, informatics, and drug discovery
technologies which enables it to simultaneously identify thousands of new genes, investigate their application in drug discovery
and perform focused searches for disease-relevant targets and leads for drug development.
The drug targets identified are then incorporated directly into test systems and used in the search for lead compounds with the
aid of Bayer's high-throughput robot screening technology. This screening process is capable of testing more than 100,000
substances each day.
''As we near the end of the first year of our collaboration, we are very pleased with the achievement of our planned goals.
Millennium has identified 18 interesting targets of which we have already moved four into screening, and we anticipate that six
more targets will be in screening by the end of the year,'' said Dr. Wolfgang Hartwig, executive vice president of
pharmaceuticals research at Bayer AG. ''The focus of our alliance is not merely on identifying large numbers of targets, but
rather on selecting high quality targets that may become drugs. Understanding these targets and achieving a disease hypothesis
is of paramount importance. We are making excellent progress together toward this goal,'' Dr. Hartwig added.
''Bayer's aggressive placement of drug targets into high throughput screening reflects their commitment to our alliance and to
the development of important, new pharmaceutical products,'' said Mark Levin, chief executive officer of Millennium
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ''Together, Bayer and Millennium are working to industrialize the drug discovery and development
process. We fully expect that our joint efforts will produce a portfolio of important new products that address the cause, not
just the symptoms, of major human disease and will build a robust pipeline for both companies,'' Mr. Levin added.
Background
The alliance, which began in September 1998, is believed to be the largest to date in the field of pharmaceutical drug discovery.
In return for a total investment of up to $465 million, including approximately a 14% equity investment in Millennium, over a
five-year period Bayer receives access to key technologies in modern genome research and a flow of new genomics-based
targets for drug development.
The primary goal of the five-year alliance is for Millennium to supply 225 important new ''drug targets'' identified as relevant for
cardiovascular disease, cancer, osteoporosis, pain, liver fibrosis, hematology and viral infections. From those identified by the
alliance, Bayer will select drug targets for its exclusive use; the remainder will be available to Millennium to use in its own
proprietary drug development efforts.
''Drug targets'' are proteins expressed by human genes which can be used to discover and develop small molecule drugs. In the
past 100 years of pharmaceutical research, some 400 drug targets based on human genes (of which there are approximately
100,000) have been identified worldwide for use in the development of medical therapies, leaving a considerable number of
potential targets still to be discovered.
Of the $465 million investment Bayer is making in Millennium, up to $368.4 million consists of a combination of guaranteed
funding and performance fees for the drug targets identified, and a license fee for the use of the genomic technologies developed
by Millennium. The remaining $96.6 million was paid by Bayer as an equity investment representing approximately a 14%
interest in Millennium. In addition, Bayer will pay royalties to Millennium on the sale of any marketed products.
Millennium, a leading drug discovery and development company, employs large-scale genetics, genomics, high throughput
screening and informatics in an integrated science and technology platform. This innovative drug discovery platform is applied
across the entire healthcare sector, from gene identification through patient management, to accelerate and transform the
discovery and development of proprietary therapeutic and Diagnomic(TM) products and services. Headquartered in
Cambridge, Massachusetts, Millennium and its affiliates currently employ more than 800 people.
Bayer is an international, research-based group with major businesses in life sciences, polymers and specialty chemicals. With
145,100 employees worldwide, Bayer recorded income before tax of DM 5.3 billion on sales of DM 54.9 billion in 1998. For
the current year, DM 4.3 billion is budgeted for research and development, attesting to the company's drive for innovation.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Among the factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in such forward looking statements include uncertainties
relating to gene identification, drug discovery and clinical development processes; changes in relationships with strategic
partners and dependence upon strategic partners for the performance of critical activities under collaborative agreements; the
impact of competitive products and technological changes; uncertainties relating to patent protection and regulatory approval;
and uncertainties relating to the ability of Millennium and its affiliates to obtain the substantial additional funds required for
progress in drug discovery and development. The factors that could affect Millennium's performance more fully described in
filings by Millennium with the Securities and Exchange Commission including but not limited to the factors set forth under the
heading ''Business - Factors That May Affect Results'' in the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Millennium for the year ended
December 31, 1998 as filed on March 24, 1999.
Editor's Note: This release and background materials are available on the Millennium website at: mlnm.com and on
the Bayer website at: bayer.com.
SOURCE: Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. |
