Debiopharm S.A., the independent drug development company specialising in oncology, endocrinology and niche products and DeveloGen AG, a biopharmaceutical company focusing on novel treatments for metabolic disorders, have entered an exclusive worldwide collaboration and licensing agreement, by which Debiopharm will develop PTR-262, a novel peptide drug for the treatment of myasthenia gravis (MG), before out-licensing to global partners for commercialisation.

Under the terms of the agreement, DeveloGen will receive milestone payments and, upon commercialisation of the product, royalties based on Debiopharm’s revenues from worldwide sales.

Rolland-Yves Mauvernay, President and CEO of Debiopharm said, “PTR-262 is a novel approach that may replace the currently used immunosuppressive drugs and avoid the side-effects that myasthenia gravis sufferers may experience. PTR-262 will be the first disease-modifying drug for the treatment of myasthenia gravis, as it aims at specifically abrogating the production of disease-causing antibodies.”

PTR-262, discovered at the laboratories of Professors Michael Sela and Edna Mozes at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot Israel, is a synthetic peptide which down regulates immune responses associated with myasthenogenic peptides. PTR-262 is derived from the myasthenogenic epitopes of the acetylcholine receptor (AChR) alpha-subunit, which specifically arrests the autoimmune destruction of AChR.

The most common form of MG is a chronic autoimmune neuromuscular disorder that is characterized by fluctuating weakness of the voluntary muscle groups. MG is characterized by T-cell mediated autoantibody attacks on the AChR at neuromuscular junctions, causing weakness and fatigue of cranial and skeletal muscles.