Galapagos NV, a mid-size biotechnology company, has achieved a late stage discovery milestone for small molecules against a novel target in the osteoarthritis (OA) alliance with Servier. This milestone triggered a payment to Galapagos of €3 million and will contribute to Group revenues in the first half of 2013.

“Galapagos already delivered multiple compounds against different OA targets into late discovery and selected a preclinical candidate last year. Today’s achievement is consistent with our strategy to move multiple, novel mechanism-of-action programs toward the clinic, thereby increasing the chances of success in disease areas with high unmet medical needs,” said Onno van de Stolpe, CEO of Galapagos.

“Galapagos is delivering what we aimed for in our alliance to discover new oral therapies in osteoarthritis. Servier is committed to developing medicines which actually address the causes of osteoarthritis, a debilitating illness for which no disease-modifying treatment is available,” said Dr Patricia Belissa-Mathiot, director of Rheumatology Innovative Pole.

In July 2010, Servier and Galapagos announced their alliance to develop new oral medicines for the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA). Galapagos is responsible for the discovery and development of new candidate drugs against novel targets, and Servier has an exclusive option to license these after the completion of phase I clinical trials. Galapagos is eligible to receive up to €290 million in success-based milestones, plus royalties on commercial sales. Galapagos also retains exclusive US commercialization rights to all commercial compounds.

Servier is a privately-run research based pharmaceutical company with a 2012 turnover of €3.9 billion anhd reinvests 25 per cent of its turnover in Research & Development in cardiovascular, metabolic, neurological, psychiatric and bone and joint diseases as well as oncology.

Galapagos is specialized in novel modes-of-action, with a large pipeline of five clinical, six pre-clinical, and 30 discovery small-molecule and antibody programmes in cystic fibrosis, inflammation, antibiotics, metabolic disease, and other indications.