The new drug discovery (NDD) ventures of the Chennai based pharma major, Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals is gaining acceleration, as the company has announced consolidation of its drug discovery activities under a common umbrella.

Orchid has reached up to an understanding with the US based Bexel Pharmaceuticals. Inc. to extend the company's ownership from 74 percent to 100 percent. Orchid has increased its stake in its joint venture with Bexel Pharmaceuticals from 50 percent to 71 percent and then to 74 percent, as part of speeding up the development activities, by the year 2006.

The companies expressed their belief that the consolidation of NDD research activities in a unified structure will trigger seamless integration of the several drug discovery programmes being pursued at Orchid and Bexel by retaining the advantages of having a discovery front-end in the US and a discovery cum developmental back-end at the company at Chennai.

Orchid's ownership extension arrangement involves buy-out by the company, of the shareholding of the US founders of Bexel Pharmaceuticals, for a cash consideration of USD 3 million. The company informed that the founders and key employees of Bexel would be granted 650,000 stock options as per standard Orchid ESOP guidelines, which they will subscribe at the grant price. The managerial and scientific organization of Bexel will continue as an integral part of the new structure, providing continuity and commitment to Orchid's broader drug discovery thrust.

According to an independent arrangement under the new agreement, Bexel would be providing an earn-out to the principal founder of Bexel in the event of an out-licensing deal for its anti-diabetes molecule BLX-1002, with a unique anti-weight gain property, materialising in a prescribed timeframe based on the phase II clinical trials. Bexel has already been engaged in discussion with selected MNCs for out-licensing the molecule.

With the consolidation of its strengths, Bexel and Orchid are planning to conduct further elaborate phase II human clinical trials on BLX-1002 in the context of its efficacy in multiple indications. The plans are to conduct second phase trials in two stages of a 28-day human clinical study followed by a 90-day study, if necessary, to generate significant additional data on the compound, according to company officials. The trials will be carried out under the Investigational Medicinal Product Dossier (IMPD) procedure in Europe. The venture also undertakes other biological studies in parallel to identify the mechanisms of action in the context of efficacy in diabetes and related complications.

Bexel has been focusing on drug discovery research in metabolic diseases, such as diabetes, obesity and autoimmune diseases, while Orchid has been focusing on anti-inflammation, anti-cancer and anti-infective therapeutic areas up to the time. Bexel's BLX-1002 has completed phase I safety and tolerability studies in healthy human volunteers as well as safety and tolerability studies in diabetic patients.