AstraZeneca Acquires Obesity Drug Developer Eccogene’s ECC5004 for $185 Million, Aiming at Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity Markets
November 9, 2023
AstraZeneca is acquiring obesity drug developer Eccogene’s ECC5004 for $185 million with the potential to pay an additional $1.8 billion in clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestones. AstraZeneca previously withdrew from the obesity drug market after its own GLP-1 agonist, AZD0186, failed to show sufficient differentiation in phase 1 trials. The company now believes ECC5004, a once-daily drug, offers a more promising profile for treatment of Type 2 diabetes and obesity. AstraZeneca holds global rights to ECC5004, but Eccogene retains the right to co-develop and co-commercialize the drug in China. AstraZeneca has also recently removed trials for sickle cell disease and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) from its phase 2 pipeline.
To read more, click here.
[Source: Fierce Biotech, November 9th, 2023]
