Achillion collaborates with Janssen to develop potential HCV drugs

Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced it has entered into a license and collaboration agreement with Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to develop and commercialize one or more of Achillion's potential drugs to treat hepatitis C virus infection, according to a press release.

Under the agreement, Achillion will grant Janssen an exclusive license to develop and, if approved, commercialize HCV products and regimens containing one or more of Achillion's HCV assets, according to the release. Achillion is eligible to receive a number of payments based upon achievement of specified development, regulatory and sales milestones, as well as tiered royalty percentages between mid-teens and low-twenties based upon future worldwide sales.

Janssen will also be responsible for all of the development costs within the collaboration and all subsequent costs related to commercialization of the HCV assets.

“We are excited to collaborate with Janssen for the worldwide development of our HCV assets in combination with their HCV portfolio,” Milind Deshpande, PhD, president and chief executive officer of Achillion, said in the release. “We believe that Janssen's renowned expertise in HCV development and commercialization enables a synergistic opportunity to rapidly advance our combined HCV assets toward the market while simultaneously achieving an optimized treatment regimen for all HCV patients.”

An important goal of the collaboration will be to develop a pan-genotypic, oral regimen for the treatment of HCV, according to the release. An initial regimen set to be investigated will include Achillion's ACH-3102, a NS5A inhibitor currently being tested in phase 2 clinical studies, in combination with an NS3/4A HCV protease inhibitor plus an NS5B HCV polymerase inhibitor from the collaboration.

Achillion was granted fast track designation for sovaprevir (ACH-1625, Achillion) by the FDA in May 2012. A clinical hold was placed on the drug by the FDA in July 2013, following the incidence of significantly elevated ALT among patients exposed to sovaprevir in a phase 1 drug-drug interaction study assessing the effects of its use with atazanavir. The hold was lifted in June 2014. – by Melinda Stevens

Disclosure: Deshpande is employed by Achillion.