Sequana Therapeutics Inc., under registration for a follow-onoffering, on Tuesday announced an expansion of its Type II diabetesresearch collaboration with Glaxo Wellcome Inc. to include obesity.

Sequana, of La Jolla, Calif., and Glaxo said they will expand theirresearch in Type II diabetes to include morbid obesity as apredisposing factor. Because obesity is a strong risk factor that oftenleads to Type II diabetes, researchers are attempting to identify thetype of diabetes gene among morbidly obese patients.

"No specific research event prompted the expansion," said RamonaJones, manager of media relations at Glaxo's U.S. subsidiary inResearch Triangle Park, N.C. "The expansion is an indication that theresearch was headed in a broader direction that just Type IIdiabetes."

Under the expanded agreement, Glaxo and Sequana will embark oncollaborations with research institutions to expand on what Jonesdescribed as the largest collection of familial histories as well astissue samples to support genotyping and linkage analysis about TypeII diabetes. Details on these collaborations will be released soon,Jones said.

Sequana is already collaborating with Birmingham HeartlandsHospital in Birmingham, U.K., to collect DNA samples from 1,000Type II diabetics and from 1,000 unaffected individuals, all from thesame ethnic background. Sequana and Glaxo have signed anagreement with Institut Pasteur in Lille, France, to obtain access to1,000 DNA samples related to Type II diabetes. In addition, the twocompanies have access to additional populations of diabetic patientsthrough collaborations with Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore;the American Diabetes Association, in Washington; and the NationalInstitute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Disease, NationalInstitutes of Health, of Bethesda, Md.

Sequana and Kaiser Permanente of Northern California, a healthmaintenance organization, in early 1994 entered into an agreement tostudy the genetic causes of Type II diabetes using Kaiser's databaseto identify families with one or more diabetic members. (SeeBioWorld Today, March 4, 1994, p.1.)

The research expansion will be supported by additional funds fromGlaxo Wellcome in the form of research support, commercialdevelopment milestones and reimbursement for the costs ofcollecting patient information. Specifics terms of the amended dealwere not disclosed.

Sequana signed the original agreement with Glaxo in July 1994. (SeeBioWorld Today, July 29, 1994, p.1.) Under the terms of thatagreement, Glaxo agreed to pay Sequana royalties on any drugsdeveloped pursuant to the Type II diabetes research. Sequanaretained rights to market diagnostic products.

Sequana's stock (NASDAQ:SQNA) gained $1.25 Tuesday to close at$23.50. n

-- Michele L. Robinson Washington Editor

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