Aptuit and Siena Biotech enter partnership in Italy
Will advance development of compounds in three therapeutic areas
US pharmaceutical services company Aptuit has entered into a partnership with Siena Biotech, an Italian clinical-stage drug delivery company, in which Siena will take a minority stake in Aptuit’s operations in Verona, Italy. Aptuit bought these operations from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) earlier this month.
Under the agreement, Aptuit will become a provider of choice for Siena Biotech’s pipeline of compounds, focused in three key therapeutic areas, including Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease and oncology. The financial terms of the partnership have not been revealed.
‘We are delighted to strengthen our existing relationship with Siena Biotech, which will be a valuable partner as we expand our presence, particularly in the Italian marketplace,’ said Timothy Tyson, chief executive of Aptuit.
‘Siena Biotech’s commitment is an important validation of the capabilities and expertise gained via our recent acquisition of the Verona Medicines Research Centre from GSK.’
Aptuit acquired GSK’s Medicines Research Centre (MRC) in Verona on 1 July extending its drug development capabilities with expertise in drug discovery, lead optimisation, API development and manufacturing, and pre-clinical and clinical drug development.
The MRC also has specific expertise in drug development in the neurosciences, which complements the needs of Siena Biotech’s development pipeline.
‘The effective integration of disciplines and technologies, from target discovery to clinical proof of concept studies is essential for the development of new medicines at Siena Biotech,’ said Giovanni Gaviraghi, ceo of Siena Biotech and former r&d director at the Glaxo MRC.
‘Aptuit has technologies, processes and skills which are complementary to those of Siena Biotech and therefore represents the ideal partner for us.’
Siena Biotech is focused on identifying tools to prevent, diagnose and cure central nervous system diseases, including orphan indications. The company has built a pipeline of optimised compounds with an emphasis on using functional data in a disease-relevant context.
