Ossianix in CNS research deal with Lundbeck

Privately-held US firm Ossianix has announced a strategic research collaboration with Danish central nervous system drug specialist Lundbeck (LUND: CO) to develop novel biopharmaceuticals for very difficult CNS drug targets.

This latest deal, financial terms of which were not disclosed, follows a previous investment in the US firm by Lundbeck (The Pharma Letter January 2, 2012). The collaboration uses Ossianix’ innovative single domain antibody platform based on the shark VNAR structure and will focus on two projects.

The first project will further develop Ossianix’ VNAR antagonists targeting an ion channel for the treatment of pain. The second project utilizes Ossianix’ Blood Brain Barrier targeting technology for the development of bispecific biopharmaceuticals to treat CNS disorders. The Ossianix platform has the advantage of targeting antibodies to the CNS where existing antibodies have proven less than ideal due to poor bioavailability. Lundbeck will fund the research plan with development and regulatory milestones.