Takeda, BridGene To Pursue Undruggable Neurodegenerative Targets

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd TAK has teamed up with BridGene Biosciences to discover small molecules against hard-to-drug therapeutic targets.
The deal will utilize BridGene’s IMTAC Chemoproteomics platform to identify targets and small molecule drug candidates for Takeda to take into clinical development.
The five-program agreement is potentially worth more than $500 million. Takeda will pay BridGene a one-time upfront payment of undisclosed size to access BridGene’s IMTAC platform.
The programs will give BridGene a chance to validate its technology. By combining chemoproteomics and small covalent molecules, BridGene will identify the targets responsible for the onset and progression of disease and show which targets a drug candidate interacts with-in-live cells.
“Access to BridGene’s novel chemoproteomics platform can help us to rapidly identify novel targets and novel drug candidates with the potential to target underlying mechanisms of debilitating neurological disorders,” said Ceri Davies, Head, Neuroscience Drug Discovery Unit at Takeda.
Price Action: TAK shares are down 2.3% at $18.36 in market trading hours on the last check Tuesday.