KU Leuven spin-out in Alzheimer’s alliance with Roche worth a potential €500M

Collaboration

KU Leuven spin-out reMYND has signed a deal worth a potential €500 million with Roche to develop first-in-class disease-modifying treatments for Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.

The aim is to slow down neurodegeneration in these two diseases by inhibiting the clumping of two brain proteins, alpha-synuclein in Parkinson’s disease and tau in Alzheimer’s disease. Clumping of alpha-synuclein and tau leads to the formation of the insoluble protein tangles that are at the heart of the pathology of these two neurodegenerative diseases.

The collaboration will focus on two of reMYND’s pre-clinical small molecule programmes. Roche and reMYND will form joint teams to progress the programmes towards clinical studies, with Roche providing input into chemistry, lead-optimisation and pre-clinical development, while reMYND will continue to conduct non-clinical pharmacology studies and further elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms. Roche will be responsible for all clinical development and worldwide commercialisation.

Luca Santarelli, Head of Central Nervous System (CNS) diseases at Roche said the addition of these programmes strengthens and complements the company’s existing research. “We are excited to have licensed these novel compounds for our CNS pipeline because we believe that they offer a unique approach to combat Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.”

Gerard Griffioen, CSO of reMYND said, “Our most advanced compound in Parkinson’s disease has demonstrated full inhibition of disease progression in pre-clinical models and could be the first treatment in clinical development for Parkinson’s disease targeting alpha-synuclein-induced toxicity.”

Koen De Witte, Managing Director of reMYND, added, “Our Alzheimer’s tau programme represents perhaps a greater potential as it addresses one of the most fundamental aspects of the disease. We believe there is a strong fit between both companies because we both have a strong biology-driven approach and aim for first-in-class treatments. In addition, Roche’s expertise in diagnostics will be crucial for maximising the chances of success along the long path of clinical development”.

Under the agreement, reMYND could receive over half a billion Euros in milestone payments, additional payments and royalties on resulting net sales, potentially reaching a double-digit level.

reMYND, a spin-out company of Leuven University, Belgium, focuses on disease-modifying treatments that aim to slow down, or even stop, cellular degeneration caused by protein misfolding. This includes Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, diabetes and a long list of orphan diseases.