COLLABORATION EXPANDED FOR HEPATITIS C DRUG

InterMune and Array BioPharma have announced the extension and expansion of their current collaboration to discover and develop novel small molecule inhibitors of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS3/4 protease. The program, which began in 2002, has produced several promising candidates that InterMune is advancing toward IND-enabling studies.

Under the terms of the agreement, InterMune will fund drug discovery, preclinical and process development at Array. InterMune maintains responsibility for clinical development and commercialization of the resulting products. Array will be entitled to receive milestone payments based on the selection and progress of clinical drug candidates, as well as royalties on net sales of products derived from the collaboration.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, an estimated 3.9 million Americans have been infected with HCV, of whom 2.7 million are chronically infected, and the prevalence of chronic HCV is increasing. Currently available therapies are insufficient, creating a need for the development of novel therapeutic approaches. Protease inhibitors represent a promising class of drugs for HCV, and the HCV NS3/4 protease is an attractive drug target because of its involvement in viral replication and suppressive effects on host response to viral invasion.