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news.Drug discovery company Galapagos has entered into a worldwide multi-target alliance with Janssen Pharmaceutica, a Johnson & Johnson company, to discover and develop novel small-molecule therapeutics for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
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Under the agreement, Janssen may select up to 12 programs from Galapagos’s internally identified rheumatoid arthritis (RA) targets into the alliance. Janssen receives future option rights to exclusively license these programs. In addition, Janssen obtained an option to the future development and commercialization of product candidates from Galapagos’ other internal RA programs, including its most advanced program based on the kinase target GT418.
With the signing of the agreement, Janssen will make an initial up-front cash payment of E15 million to Galapagos. In addition, Janssen will make an E2 million milestone payment for the selection of GT146, one of Galapagos’s advanced RA programs, into the alliance. Under the alliance agreement, Galapagos will be responsible for the discovery of small molecule product candidates for the novel, validated RA targets chosen by Janssen. Galapagos will develop product candidates through to Phase IIa proof of concept (POC) clinical trials.
Galapagos is eligible to receive success-based progress milestones from Janssen. Upon Galapagos’s achievement of POC for a product candidate, Janssen has an exclusive option to license the product candidate from each alliance program, and will then assume full responsibility for further clinical development and worldwide commercialization, at its expense.