$400m disease deal for Astra

Pharma giant Astrazeneca has struck a $400 million (£309m) deal with Japanese drugs group Takeda Pharmaceutical to create a treatment for Parkinson’s disease.

The FTSE 100 firm, which in the UK has seven sites and about 6,700 staff, said the transaction will see it bring a specific antibody to market, with Phase 1 clinical trials set for later this year. The move comes after the group saw its share price plunge more than 15 per cent last month when a lung cancer drug failed the first round of the “Mystic trial”.

Mene Pangalos, Astrazeneca’s executive vice-president, said: “Today there are no medicines that can slow or halt the degenerative progress of Parkinson’s disease so this remains a large area of unmet medical need.

“Takeda has an excellent track record in neuroscience research… by combining our scientific expertise and sharing the risks and cost of development, we hope to accelerate the advancement of [antibody] Medi1341 as a promising new approach to support the treatment of people with Parkinson’s disease around the world.”

The deal will see both firms shoulder the commercial and development costs of the project, with any revenues being shared equally.

Emiliangelo Ratti, Takeda’s senior vice-president, said Parkinson’s disease “continues to represent a devastating diagnosis and a burdensome challenge for therapeutic discovery. Our collaboration with Astrazeneca is a sophisticated one… with the aim of improving the lives of patients.”

In July, Astrazeneca saw half-year sales fall 11 per cent to $10.5 billion after losing patents on profitable drugs. Its share price yesterday closed down by 0.2 per cent at 4,491.5p.