Merck, Idera Pharmaceuticals extend their vaccine research collaboration

Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: IDRA) today announced that Merck & Co., Inc., through an affiliate, has extended its research collaboration with Idera for a fourth year. In December 2006, the companies entered into an exclusive license and research collaboration agreement to research, develop, and commercialize vaccine products containing the Company’s investigational agonist compounds targeting Toll-like Receptors (TLRs) 7, 8, and 9 in the fields of oncology, infectious diseases, and Alzheimer’s disease. As part of the agreement, the two companies engaged in a two-year research and development collaboration to generate novel agonists targeting TLR7 and TLR8 and incorporating both Merck and Idera chemistry for use in vaccines in the licensed fields, with Merck having the right to extend the collaboration for two additional one-year periods.

“During the first three years of our agreement, scientists at Idera and Merck have created a large portfolio of novel agonists of TLRs 7, 8, and 9 using Idera’s chemistry-based approach together with Merck’s innovations in chemistry and adjuvant formulation,” said Tim Sullivan, Ph.D., Vice President of Development Programs at Idera. “We look forward to continued studies with selected TLR agonist candidates as vaccine adjuvants.”

“Throughout this collaboration, scientists at Merck and Idera have collaborated closely to characterize novel TLR agonists as adjuvant candidates,” said Amy Espeseth, Ph.D., Director of Virology and Vaccines, Worldwide External Basic Research, Merck Research Laboratories. “We look forward to continued progress on the program.”

Merck and Idera scientists have made several data presentations and publications based on the work conducted under this research and development collaboration.