NEW YORK (AP) – Gilead Sciences Inc. and a unit of Johnson & Johnson say they plan to work together to develop a pair of combination HIV pills.
The companies said they have agreed to collaborate on a pill that combines Johnson & Johnson’s HIV drug Prezista with Gilead’s drug candidate cobicistat, which is designed to make other anti-retroviral drugs more effective. They are negotiating a collaboration that would create a drug combining Prezista with Gilead’s HIV drug Emtriva, along with another Gilead drug candidate called GS 7340. GS 7340 is a version of Gilead’s older drug Viread.
The deal won’t be completed unless the companies come to an agreement on the second combination pill. The companies did not disclose financial terms of the potential partnership, which would be between Gilead and Tibotec Pharmaceuticals, a unit of Johnson & Johnson’s Ortho Biotech Inc.
Tibotec would be responsible for formulating the first pill as well as for manufacturing, regulatory matters, and sales worldwide, while Gilead would be responsible for development and sales of the second product. Gilead retains all rights to cobicistat as a standalone product and for use with other drugs.
Date: June 28, 2011
Source: Associated Press
Filed Under: Drug Discovery
