Bayer and Arvinas Announce Strategic Collaboration to Develop PROTAC-Based Therapies and Sustainable Agricultural Solutions

Today, Bayer and Arvinas, a company focused on developing protein degradation therapies, announced a collaboration agreement. Bayer will leverage Arvinas’ PROTAC protein degradation technology to develop novel human therapeutics for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, oncology indications, and gynecological disorders. Additionally, Bayer plans to apply this technology in the agricultural sector. The upfront payment for this collaboration exceeds $110 million.

Arvinas is an emerging company focused on PROTAC protein degradation technology. Simply put, this technology utilizes small-molecule drugs. One end of the molecule targets the protein of interest, while the other recruits an E3 ligase to engage with the target protein, thereby promoting its degradation. Through this approach, researchers can successfully degrade specific proteins.

▲Mechanism of Action of the PROTAC Platform (Image source: Arvinas official website)

In an exclusive interview with WuXi AppTec more than six months ago, Dr. John Houston, CEO of Arvinas, revealed that the company’s two lead programs were poised to enter clinical development, targeting the degradation of the androgen receptor and estrogen receptor for the treatment of prostate cancer and breast cancer, respectively. In March this year, ARV-110, the androgen receptor degrader, completed dosing in its first patient, marking a new milestone for protein degradation therapy.

The industry holds a highly favorable view of Arvinas’ technology, with prominent pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer and Genentech having long established R&D collaborations with the company. Today’s partnership with Bayer can be seen as a continuation of this trend.

“Collaborating with the pioneers of PROTAC technology, we see tremendous opportunities,” said Mr. Kemal Malik, Member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG. “Advancing this technology as rapidly as possible will yield more future solutions for sustainable agriculture and innovative therapies.”

“As the first company founded around protein degradation technology, we are thrilled by the prospect of improving patients’ lives,” said Dr. John Houston. “But we also recognize that the potential of this technology extends beyond novel drug development. Through these collaborations, we aim not only to expand into entirely new disease areas, but also to pioneer its application in agriculture together with Bayer.”

In the field of new drug development, the two companies will strive to develop a series of novel therapies, while Bayer will acquire rights to new molecules from this collaboration. Depending on R&D progress, Arvinas is also eligible to receive milestone payments totaling $685 million. In agriculture, the two companies will establish a joint venture to deliver innovative and sustainable agricultural products.

References:

[1] Bayer and Arvinas to Collaborate on Human PROTAC® Therapies and Launch a Separate Joint Venture to Develop Agricultural PROTAC® Applications, Retrieved June 4, 2019, from https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2019/06/04/1863792/0/en/Bayer-and-Arvinas-to-Collaborate-on-Human-PROTAC-Therapies-and-Launch-a-Separate-Joint-Venture-to-Develop-Agricultural-PROTAC-Applications.html

Original Title: Flash | $110 Million! Bayer Strikes R&D Collaboration on Protein Degradation Therapy

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