KineMed, Inc., a pathway-based drug discovery and development company, announced a non-exclusive collaboration with Merck & Co., Inc., under which KineMed's proprietary reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) technology will be used to evaluate investigational compounds discovered by Merck.
RCT is the only known metabolic pathway by which excess cholesterol can be removed from tissues and has therefore received considerable attention from drug developers and the clinical research community as a therapeutic target.
A relevant increase in the rate of RCT is the goal of approaches that seek to raise HDL levels for the prevention and treatment of atherosclerosis.
Under the terms of the agreement, KineMed could receive from Merck in excess of $5.5 million in initial and research payments should the collaboration extend for the full term and up to $70 million in milestones for each of up to 10 investigational compounds developed using KineMed's RCT technology. Milestones would also be payable under certain other conditions which have not been disclosed.
RCT is one of the key pathways for which KineMed has unique technology and IP for measuring therapeutic modulation in intact animals and patients. KineMed's RCT technology is currently being used by the company and its Pharma partners in pre clinical studies for screening candidate compounds, demonstrating on-mechanism drug effects, and optimising treatment regimes.
David Fineman, president and CEO of KineMed, commented, "This is a seminal deal for KineMed, and we are excited to work with Merck in identifying and developing compounds that may impact atherosclerosis through RCT. The objective of the collaboration is to generate clinical data illustrating on-mechanism effects upon RCT, which our partner can then use to make decisions in order to advance its therapeutic programs. Underlying these efforts is KineMed's strong and leading patent estate encompassing the analysis of broad dimensions of cholesterol biology, including the kinetics of cholesterol in vivo."
Fineman added, "We are hopeful that this collaboration will provide important validation for our ability to generate insights in RCT based on physiological phenotyping, an area in which we maintain the freedom to engage in additional relationships."
Dr Richard Pasternak, vice president of Merck Research Laboratories stated, "We hope that the collaboration with KineMed will give us new insights into cardiovascular disease and provide new approaches to accelerate development of novel drugs for the number one cause of death and disability worldwide."