ALLSCHWIL/BASEL, Switzerland/SAN DIEGO, , June 02, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Actelion Ltd (SWX:ATLN) and Discovery Partners International, Inc. (Nasdaq:DPII) today announced that the two companies have signed a three-year collaborative agreement whereby Actelion will procure drug discovery capabilities from Discovery Partners International. No financial details of the agreement were disclosed.
Jean-Paul Clozel, MD and Chief Executive Officer of Actelion commented, "At the Company's founding in late 1997, Actelion immediately started a significant research effort to ensure long-term growth through innovation. Collaborating with Discovery Partners International and their highly qualified staff allows us to gradually increase our already substantive drug discovery efforts."
Riccardo Pigliucci, Chief Executive Officer of Discovery Partners International said, "As a leader in this field, Discovery Partners has established a critical mass of capabilities to support a number of Actelion's specific drug discovery needs. This collaboration provides Actelion with complementary resources and abilities, which can be utilized in a flexible manner on multiple discovery programs."
Several of Actelion's Drug Discovery projects are in an advanced stage. The projects, which are based on two molecular platforms (G-protein-coupled receptors and aspartyl proteases), have the potential to satisfy important unmet medical needs in cardiovascular, central nervous system and oncology indications. Actelion is in the process of adding new, early stage projects to its portfolio, which features three advanced projects in the areas of renin inhibition, beta-secretase (BACE) inhibition and orexin antagonism. Recently, the company started human testing of the first urotensin II receptor antagonist.
Discovery Partners International Discovery Partners International, Inc. is a leader in drug discovery collaborations offering integrated services and products that span the drug discovery continuum including target characterization, high throughput screening, lead generation, lead optimization, high throughput synthesis automation, and gene expression analysis. DPI has actively contributed to dozens of integrated drug discovery collaborations, working on many of the most promising new biological target areas for the biotech and pharma industries. Discovery Partners is headquartered in San Diego, California and has operations in the United States and Europe. For more information on Discovery Partners International, Inc., please visit the Company's website at http://www.discoverypartners.com.
Actelion Ltd
Actelion Ltd is a biopharmaceutical company with its corporate headquarters in Allschwil/Basel, Switzerland. Actelion's first drug Tracleer(R), an orally available dual endothelin receptor antagonist, has been approved as a therapy for pulmonary arterial hypertension. Actelion markets Tracleer(R) through its own subsidiaries in key markets worldwide, including the United States (based in South San Francisco), the European Union as well as Canada and Switzerland. Actelion, founded in late 1997, is a leading player in innovative science related to the endothelium - the single layer of cells separating every blood vessel from the blood stream. Actelion focuses on the discovery, development and marketing of innovative drugs for significant unmet medical needs. Actelion shares are traded on the SWX Swiss Exchange (ticker symbol: ATLN).