CV Therapeutics Inc., a four-year-old privately held companyfocused on chronic cardiovascular diseases, signed an agreement withBayer AG, giving the German drug maker rights to molecular targetsbelieved to be involved in inflammatory diseases.

The collaboration is the first with a major pharmaceutical firm forCV Therapeutics, of Palo Alto, Calif. Financial terms were notdisclosed, but the biotechnology company received an up-frontlicensing fee. Bayer, of Leverkusen, Germany, also agreed to makemilestone payments and contribute royalties on products emergingfrom CV Therapeutics' research.

Michael Sterns, director of business development, said CVTherapeutics sold rights to patented molecules it discovered withlinks to inflammatory disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis andcardiovascular diseases, as well as assays to evaluate potential drugcandidates.

Bayer will use the research to develop compounds to influence themolecular targets.

Although the Bayer deal is the first pharmaceutical collaboration forCV Therapeutics, Sterns said negotiations are ongoing forpartnerships in other areas, including the company's most advanceddrug candidate.

CV Therapeutics' lead product, CVT-124, is an adenosine A1-receptor antagonist under development as a treatment for congestiveheart failure and other disorders, such as liver and kidney diseases,where dangerous fluid retention is a problem.

A successful Phase I trial of CVT-124 is completed and Sterns saidthe company is in talks with potential collaborators to continueclinical development. The small molecule blocks receptors in thekidney to limit the reabsorption of sodium, which results in fluidbuildup in the body.

In April 1996 CV Therapeutics acquired U.S. and European rights toanother product, ranolazine, from Syntex USA, of Palo Alto, asubsidiary of Roche Holding Ltd., of Basel, Switzerland. The drug, apiperazine acetamide, already has been evaluated in Phase II trials forangina and ischemic heart disease. CV Therapeutics is seeking apartner to continue development.

Another potential drug, a cholesterol-lowering compound, failed inPhase II studies and is being re-evaluated in preclinical trials. CVT-1,a sulfated polysaccharide, was designed to block a transport proteinthat plays a role in promoting absorption of cholesterol from theintestine.

CV Therapeutics also has a research alliance, started in 1993, withGenta Inc., of San Diego, for development of antisense drugs fortreatment of restenosis following angioplasty. n

-- Charles Craig

(c) 1997 American Health Consultants. All rights reserved.