Arvinas to collaborate with Pfizer on protein degradation drugs

Biotech company Arvinas has announced a multi-year research collaboration and licence agreement with global pharmaceutical corporation Pfizer.

The biotech company was founded in 2013, and uses protein degradation technology to develop novel drugs to treat cancer, among other diseases. Arvinas has previously partnered with Genentech, as well as Merck & Co.

Arvinas’s proprietary platform PROTAC (proteolysis targeting chimeras) uses technology to create small molecule therapeutics aimed to degrade key disease-causing cell proteins via proteolysis.

The agreement with Pfizer is intended to aid the discovery and development of drug candidates using the PROTAC platform.

Under the agreement the biotech company will be responsible for driving research and discovery efforts, and Pfizer will be in charge of clinical development and the commercial delivery of any products resulting from the collaboration. Upon the achievement of pre-agreed targets, Arvinas may receive up to $830 million, as well as tiered royalties based on global product sales.

John Houston, president and CEO of Arvinas, said: “As a global industry leader, Pfizer is uniquely positioned to partner with us as we exploit the potential of PROTACs in multiple disease areas. This marks another key milestone as we continue to expand the use of our targeted protein degradation platform and advance Arvinas’s first candidates into the clinic.”

John Ludwig, head of medicinal sciences at Pfizer, said: “Protein degradation is an area of considerable interest for us, and we look forward to working with Arvinas to determine the potential applicability of this approach across multiple therapeutic areas.”

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