By Debbie Strickland

Genzyme Transgenics Corp. has landed the first corporate partner for its TransGenerics program, B. Braun Melsungen A.G., which agreed to pay up to $13 million for production of recombinant human protein drugs in the milk of transgenic goats.

Framingham, Mass.-based Genzyme Transgenics has said its methods could offer higher quantities of therapeutic proteins at lower cost.

The B. Braun deal calls for Genzyme Transgenics to express an undisclosed protein in the milk of transgenic goats, produce clinical grade material and conduct preclinical and initial clinical studies. The companies will share the responsibilities of pivotal clinical trials.

The protein in question is "currently on the market for acute care, and it's quite a large market," said Pat Dimond, spokeswoman for Genzyme Transgenics.

B. Braun will have exclusive worldwide marketing rights, with Genzyme Transgenics retaining marketing rights in North America.

B. Braun is a Melsungen, Germany, company that markets, among other things, infusion and tranfusion products, medical devices and therapeutics for acute care. The company's 1996 sales topped DM3 billion.

This collaboration will likely serve as a model for other TransGenerics agreements, Dimond said. Discussions are ongoing with other prospective partners.

Genzyme Transgenics launched its TransGenerics program this summer with the expression of human beta interferon and human growth hormone in the milk of transgenic mice. As yet unpartnered, those two proteins address markets worth about $1.5 billion worldwide. (See BioWorld Today, Aug. 27, 1997, p. 2.)

"The company continues to achieve milestones in all project areas," wrote analyst Mary Ann Gray, of SBC Warburg Dillon Read Inc., in New York, in a report on Genzyme Transgenics. "Near-term news items on this front could include the signing of additional TransGeneric contracts as well as manufacturing deals."

The company's shares (NASDAQ:GZTC) closed Tuesday at $11.50, unchanged. *