Alizyme Details R&D Strategy And Pipeline

UK firm Alizyme, which focuses on developing new drugs for obesity and gastrointestinal disorders, has given an update on the status of its development programs, following the appointment of Richard Palmer as chief operating officer.

Alizyme has adopted a model which is becoming more common in the USA but is still rarely seen in Europe; the virtual company which farms out the drug development work to outside contractors. For example, Alizyme has negotiated a preferred provider agreement with Quintiles, soon to become the largest clinical research organization in the world (see also page 3).

In its core program of obesity, Alizyme has avoided tackling the problem via centrally-acting drugs or compounds which alter fat metabolism, and decided instead to modulate caloric absorption, an area being pioneered at the moment by Roche with its lipase inhibitor Xenical (orlistat; see Marketletter October 21). Dr Palmer believes that there are areas upon which orlistat can be improved, and Alizyme says it currently has two projects building a line of potential candidates for further development.