B-MS and AstraZeneca to collaborate on diabetes drug development program

US pharmaceutical major Bristol-Myers Squibb and its Anglo-Swedish counterpart AstraZeneca say that they have entered into an agreement to develop and commercialize two investigational compounds for the treatment of type II diabetes. The drugs, if approved by regulatory agencies worldwide, could achieve sales of between $2.0 billion and $3.0 billion in the middle of the next decade, according to reports in the UK's Financial Times.

The drugs in question, both of which were discovered by the US firm, are saxagliptin, a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor that is currently in Phase III assessment, and the sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, dapagliflozin, which is in Phase IIb development. Also, should either party develop additional DPP-4 or SGLT-2 based compounds, the other partner has the option to include the drug in the collaboration.

The firms explained that saxagliptin in particular represents a potential new approach to diabetes therapy in that it decreases blood sugar indirectly by prolonging the action of hormones called incretins that increase the body's consumption of sugar, mainly by increasing insulin production by the pancreas. SGLT-2 inhibitors, such as dapagliflozin, block re-absorption of glucose from the urine in patients with type 2 diabetes.