Synosia signs second agreement with Roche

Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company Synosia Therapeutics has entered into a second agreement with Roche, pursuant to which, Synosia gains access to a new-generation 5-HT6 antagonist in Phase I to be investigated for the treatment of cognitive disorders.

This deal expands and builds on the original agreement with Roche, announced in 2007, to develop multiple compounds targeting disorders of the central nervous system (CNS).

Under the terms of the original agreement with Roche, Synosia assumed responsibility for the clinical development of five drug candidates in CNS: nepicastat, an A2a antagonist, a 5-HT6 antagonist, an IP inhibitor and an mGluR1 enhancer.

This second agreement extends the partnership to include a second 5-HT6 antagonist and also revises the terms of the original agreement to give Synosia full development and commercialisation rights to all programmes. Roche retains opt-in rights to the 5-HT6 programme only.

In addition to the Roche partnership, Synosia also has strategic agreements in place with Novartis and Syngenta, with compounds in late-stage Phase I and Phase II development.

Ian Massey, CEO and president of Synosia, said: Our strategy of undertaking innovative, proof-of-mechanism clinical trials to explore the full potential of these molecules is working well and we expect to see data later this year. We are particularly pleased to gain access to an additional 5-HT6 antagonist which has the potential to be a best-in-class molecule for a target with substantial preclinical and clinical validation.