SynCo Bio Partners to manufacture Versartis' type 2 diabetes drug

SynCo Bio Partners, a Netherlands-based biopharmaceutical contract manufacturer, is to collaborate with US biotech Versartis on the production of Versartis' lead drug candidate, VRS-859, a novel GLP-1 analog for monthly dosing to treat type 2 diabetes.

Under the agreement, SynCo will further develop the Versartis production process for VRS-859 and optimise the manufacturing process to increase yields for the forthcoming cGMP production.

VRS-859 is a recombinant fusion protein containing exenatide and XTEN, a hydrophilic amino acid sequence that prolongs the half-life of proteins and peptides. New therapeutic compounds using the XTEN technology are expected to provide enhanced stability and less frequent dosing requirements with potentially fewer patient side effects.

"Versartis selected SynCo because of its extensive pharmaceutical manufacturing experience and its ability to deliver bulk and final product for clinical trials and ultimately, for commercialisation," said Jeffrey Cleland, founder and ceo of Versartis. "We expect SynCo to ensure our goal of initiating Phase 1 clinical trials for VRS-859 in the first half of 2010."

Versartis, is a joint venture between Amunix and Index Ventures. It owns and develops the novel drug candidates in metabolic diseases and endocrinology that it has licensed from Amunix. Versartis has preclinical proof-of-concept for three product candidates in its pipeline: exenatide and IL-1ra for diabetes, and hGH for growth hormone deficiency.