Ensemble
Discovery today announced the initiation of a strategic alliance
with Pfizer
Inc. (NYSE: PFE) to discover and develop drug candidates of a novel
class against a number of high-value pharmaceutical targets.
“Pfizer is
very pleased to join this collaboration. The Ensemble technology
platform will give us access to an area of chemical space not currently
well-represented in our file that holds the potential to be of utility
in addressing novel target types.”
The collaboration will deploy Ensemble’s proprietary drug discovery
platforms and EnsemblinTM
compound libraries to discover and advance drug candidates. Pfizer will
provide upfront and research payments to Ensemble and will have the
right to develop and commercialize any products arising from the
collaboration. In addition, Ensemble will receive development milestones
plus royalties based on worldwide sales of any drugs emerging from the
alliance and commercialized by Pfizer.
The goal of the alliance is to develop Ensemblins against important
therapeutic targets, particularly those involving protein-protein
interactions. Ensemblins are a new class of oral drugs developed by
Ensemble to address disease targets that cannot be modulated effectively
by traditional small molecule pharmaceuticals.
“We are excited to launch our new alliance with Pfizer,” said Dr.
Michael D. Taylor, CEO of Ensemble Discovery. “This is our second
major alliance in less than a year and it attributes a significantly
increased value to our platform and its resultant products. This deal
supports Ensemble’s position as the leading company exploring new
therapeutic opportunities between small molecules and biologics.”
Tony Wood, Ph.D., Global Head of Chemistry at Pfizer said, “Pfizer is
very pleased to join this collaboration. The Ensemble technology
platform will give us access to an area of chemical space not currently
well-represented in our file that holds the potential to be of utility
in addressing novel target types.”