Amgen embarks on shopping spree

Amgen plans to acquire Alantos, a private company developing drugs for the treatment of diabetes and inflammatory diseases. Alantos' lead drug candidate, ALS 2-0426, is a DPP-IV inhibitor in clinical development (Phase 2a) for the treatment of type II diabetes.

Amgen will pay US$300m in cash for Alantos. which will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Amgen. The acquisition has been approved by the boards of directors of each company and the shareholders of Alantos. It is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2007.

Alantos Pharmaceuticals is a chemistry-driven biopharmaceutical company with a proprietary pipeline of small molecule drugs focused in the area of type II diabetes and osteoarthritis / inflammation. With locations in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Heidelberg, Germany, Alantos Pharmaceuticals employs 45 people.

ALS 2-0426 is an orally administered inhibitor of DPP-IV, which in turn inactivates glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), an important mediator of blood glucose levels following meals. Studies suggest that ALS 2-0426 is potent, highly selective and can be administered once per day. Phase 2a studies were initiated in May in collaboration with Servier, who is the development and ex-US commercialization partner for the compound.

This news comes only a couple of days after Amgen said it would pay $420m in cash to acquire Ilypsa, a private San Francisco Bay area biotech company focused on kidney disease care.

Ilypsa's lead drug candidate, ILY101, is a phosphate binder for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients on hemodialysis.