Genzyme and Isis announce strategic alliance including exclusive worldwide license of Mipomersen

Genzyme Corp. and Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. have announced a major strategic alliance in which Genzyme will develop and commercialise Mipomersen, Isis' lipid-lowering treatment for high risk cardiovascular patients, that utilises novel antisense technology.

As part of the strategic relationship, Genzyme will also have preferred access to future Isis drugs for CNS and certain rare diseases.

Genzyme will pay Isis $150 million to purchase five million shares of Isis common stock for $30 per share upon Hart-Scott-Rodino clearance. Upon completion of final contracts, Genzyme will pay Isis a $175 million up-front Mipomersen license fee. In addition to this initial $325 million, Isis has the potential to receive significant milestone payments for Mipomersen, which is currently in Phase 3 trials. Once the product is launched, the two companies will share profits.

"This alliance is an excellent strategic fit for Genzyme's business model and culture," said Henri A Termeer, Genzyme's chairman and chief executive officer. "Mipomersen is an innovative approach to addressing a real unmet medical need, and we believe it could prove to be the most effective lipid-lowering agent for high risk patients for whom conventional therapies are not sufficient. This potential blockbuster is a very Genzyme-like product. It provides significant benefit over the standard of care, targets a well-defined and severely ill patient population, and offers meaningful revenue and earnings potential."

"We feel that Genzyme is the perfect partner for Isis and for Mipomersen," said Stanley Crooke, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Isis. "We have been very pleased with the quality and depth of interest in this flagship drug in our cardiovascular pipeline, and as we evaluated the licensing terms from various parties, we felt that Genzyme would value Mipomersen appropriately as a pipeline-transforming product. This commitment to Mipomersen, along with Genzyme's strength in drug development and marketing, made this relationship strategically compelling."

Deal terms
Isis will transition development responsibility for Mipomersen to Genzyme over the next two years. In addition to the up-front payment, Isis also has the opportunity to receive from Genzyme up to $825 million in development and regulatory milestone payments plus up to $750 million in commercial milestone payments.