Blueprint Medicines Corp (NASDAQ: BPMC) is collaborating with Proteovant Therapeutics to develop protein degrader medicines. Therapies that target protein degradation use the body’s system of protein disposal. Moreover, these therapies go for disease-causing proteins that are difficult to target. Such therapies have so far been hard to create.
How the partnership would work
The partnership will use Proteovant’s platform for targeted protein degradation, optimized by AI. The parties will use this with expertise from Blueprint Medicines’ to find protein degraders.
Together, the company will investigate vital targets and improve two therapies into potential candidates for development. Furthermore, VantAI, a partner for Proteovant, will contribute AI technologies to optimize and generate degraders.
Once the companies find a viable drug candidate, it is exclusively up to Blueprint Medicines to commercialize and develop it. Proteovant, on the other hand, can co-commercialize and co-develop the second drug.
According to Blueprint Medicines’ president of research and development, Dr. Fouad Namouni, the company specializes in creating cutting-edge therapies that can add to its extensive portfolio. The collaborations will enable the company to develop therapies that will improve life for people with blood disorders and cancers.
Dr. Namouni adds that there have been several developments in targeted protein degradation, which have created opportunities for Blueprint Medicines to improve its core kinase abilities. It also enables it to develop other ways of treating targets that are resistant to treatment and hard to medicate.
Target protein treatments are often complex to develop
Proteovant Therapeutics’ CEO, Drew Fromkin, adds that many drug targets have been resistant to treatment. Fortunately, protein degradation changes that. It will enable the company to create more efficient, tolerable, selective, and potent therapies.
Fromkin states that his company has an efficient engine for degrader discovery. It uses VantAI’s expert AI technology as Proteovant’s experience in drug hunting. In addition, the company is happy to use its skills in its partnership with Blueprints to help treat serious illnesses.
As per their agreement, Blueprint Medicines will lay Proteovant $20 million. Afterward, Proteovant could receive about $632 million after completing commercialization, regulatory, development, and research milestones.
The companies could also decide to continue their partnership for two more targets with funding from Blueprint Medicines.
