Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Raptor), has entered a collaboration and licensing agreement with Roche to evaluate therapeutic delivery across the blood-brain barrier, (BBB) starting with Raptor's proprietary NeuroTrans BBB transporter platform.

Under terms of the agreement, Roche will fund studies of select molecules attached to Raptor's proprietary NeuroTrans, a derivative of the receptor-associated protein (RAP). The agreement provides Roche with an exclusive worldwide license to NeuroTrans for use in the delivery of diagnostic and therapeutic molecules across the BBB.

Scientists at Raptor and Roche will actively collaborate on the project. Raptor will receive an initial upfront fee for the collaboration to cover its portion of the initial studies, along with development milestone payments and royalties in exchange for the licensing of NeuroTrans.

Todd C Zankel, chief scientific officer and co-founder of Raptor, stated, "We are excited to be collaborating with Roche, a world leader in pharmaceutical research. We believe that by combining our knowledge of the work done in the area of BBB transport and the resources of Roche, our collaboration is well positioned to make significant progress in a critical and challenging area in medical research."

Crossing the BBB remains a major obstacle to effectively treating most neurological disorders. While medical research has identified hundreds of potential therapeutic compounds that might be highly effective in treating devastating neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's Disease, the majority of these compounds do not cross the BBB by themselves. So they cannot get to where they need to go to be effective drugs. The challenge of finding a means to deliver these compounds to the brain has resulted in an intensive search for 'BBB transporter molecules' that could be attached to these potential therapeutics and, following intravenous administration, deliver the drug to the brain.

"Our collaboration with Roche will enable us to further the development of Raptor's NeuroTrans BBB transporter molecules, in conjunction with Roche's proprietary therapeutic molecules, to potentially deliver these compounds in therapeutic quantities across the BBB following intravenous administration," said Christopher Starr, CEO of Raptor. "It is our hope that this collaboration, which will leverage the knowledge and expertise of Dr Zankel and his group here at Raptor, coupled with the ongoing research of the scientists at Roche, will bring us an increased understanding of the most effective means to transport therapeutic molecules across the BBB, in order to more effectively treat these devastating neurodegenerative diseases."

NeuroTrans is Raptor's proprietary receptor-associated protein (RAP)-based technology program designed to deliver therapeutics across the blood-brain barrier (BBB), with the potential to provide safer, less intrusive, and more effective therapies to treat a wide variety of brain disorders.

Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp is dedicated to speeding the delivery of new treatment options to patients by working to improve existing therapeutics through the application of highly specialized drug targeting platforms and formulation expertise.