Eisai enters agreement to develop treatments for neglected tropical diseases

Japanese drug major Eisai (TYO: 4523) has entered into a global agreement with the Broad Institute, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, to jointly discover and develop new therapeutic agents for the treatment of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and tuberculosis.

Eisai and the Broad Institute will collaborate on drug discovery initiatives toward novel treatments for NTDs and tuberculosis through optimization of compounds screened from the latter's chemical library. The first project will conduct drug discovery research aimed at the creation of a novel treatment for Chagas disease, transmitted by the bite of the assassin bug or vinchuca, which is particularly endemic in poorer areas of Latin America and the Caribbean.

This first project for the treatment of Chagas disease has also been awarded a grant for partial funding by the Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT Fund), an international non-profit organization that aims to promote the discovery of new health technologies from Japan for eliminating infectious diseases prevalent in developing countries. Eisai and the Broad Institute will use the grant toward the project's implementation.