Advinus Therapeutics has achieved the first milestone in a drug discovery and clinical development collaboration with Merck & Co Inc. which focuses on two target programmes for metabolic disorders.

The companies have been working together since November 2006 to develop clinically validated drug candidates, with Merck retaining the right to advance the most promising of these candidates into late-stage clinical trials.

"This milestone was achieved three months ahead of schedule, largely due to the exceptional working relationship between the two partners," said Dr. Rashmi Barbhaiya, CEO, Advinus. The achievement validates the company's business model and is a testimony that novel drug discovery is the wave of the future for India, he said.

"Metabolic disorders continue to be an important focus for Merck," said Dr. Samuel Wright, Vice President Worldwide Cardiovascular Basic Research, Merck Research Laboratories. "The achievement of this milestone provides strong validation of our decision to collaborate with Advinus, one of India's leading drug discovery/development companies."

Under the terms of the agreement, Advinus will receive milestone payments upon meeting agreed upon criteria at various stages of discovery and development. Advinus could potentially receive US $74.5 million per target and is also eligible for royalties on the sales of any products that result from the collaboration.

Advinus engaged in drug discovery and contract services for pharma and agrochem companies is backed by the Tatas. The Discovery arm focuses on Metabolic Diseases, Inflammation and Neglected diseases. This unit of the company is fully integrated from hit to preclinical candidate selection while Advinus Development offers an integrated service platform for process chemistry, DMPK, clinical pharmacology, safety assessment, analytical R&D, bio-analytical and formulation development.