Debiopharm

Debiopharm Group™

Type	Société Anonyme
Industry	biopharmaceutical
Founded	Lausanne, Switzerland (1979)
Founder(s)	Dr Rolland-Yves Mauvernay
Headquarters	Lausanne, Switzerland
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Dr Rolland-Yves Mauvernay President, Thierry Mauvernay, Executive Vice President,Dr Kamel Besseghir, CEO Debiopharm S.A, Dr Bertrand Ducrey, CEO Debio R.P. S.A
Employees	340
Website	www.debiopharm.com

Debiopharm Group™ (Debiopharm) is a global biopharmaceutical group of companies comprising Debiopharm S.A., Debio R.P. S.A. (Recherche Pharmaceutique), Debioclinic S.A. and the two financial arms Debiomanagement S.A. and Debioinnovation S.A. The group applies scientific and clinical expertise to address unmet medical needs through the in-licensing of promising biologics and small molecules, the clinical development of the same and the out-licensing for commercialiasation.

The group has a successful track record in expedite clinical drug development and is family owned. The company’s leadership position in clinical development has been documented through the development of triptorelin under the brandnames Decapeptyl®/Trelstar®/Pamorelin® for the palliative treatment of advanced prostate cancer, endometriosis, uterine fibromyomas, precocious puberty, female infertility, breast cancer and ovarian cancer, and under the brandnames Moapar®/Salvacyl® for the treatment of severe sexual deviations and of oxaliplatin (Eloxatin®/Elplat®) for the treatment of colorectal cancer.

For thirty years Debiopharm Group™ has established alliances with leading biotech, pharmaceutical and start-up companies as well as with academic institutions. Sanofi-Aventis, Ipsen Pharma, Novartis, Curis, MSM Protein Technologies, Mercury Therapeutics, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)are a few examples of Debiopharm partners.

Structure

Debiopharm Group™ was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. The group consists of five companies:

• Debiopharm S.A. a biopharmaceutical development company that in-licenses promising biologics and small molecule drug candidates for global development;

• Debio R.P. S.A. (Recherche Pharmaceutique) - a company conducting applied research on molecules and drug delivery systems. Debio R.P. S.A. production facilities are FDA and Swissmedic-inspected.

• Debioclinic S.A. - a clinical research unit providing regulatory, biometric, pharmaceutical, clinical and project management support;

• Debioinnovation S.A. – a company financing Debiopharm's investments into biotechnology and pharmaceutical start-ups to create synergies with the group;

• Debiomanagement S.A. – the financial arm of Debiopharm Group™ comprising a financial and a real estate department.

Industry: Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical, Diagnostic

Products

Eloxatin®/Elplat®

3 formulations of Decapeptyl®/Trelstar®/Pamorelin®

Moapar®/Salvacyl®

History

In 1979, Dr. Rolland-Yves Mauvernay founded Debiopharm Group™. In 1981, the laboratory Cytotech was created in Martigny and a few years later became Debio R.P.. The company first worked on interferon and in 1982, started to focus on triptorelin after acquiring the rights to its development from Tulane University. The first license to market triptorelin was obtained in France, in 1986. In 1989, Debiopharm in-licensed oxaliplatin from Nagoya City University. The drug was first approved in Europe, in 1996. Debioclinic S.A. was founded in 1993. In september 2004, after having occupied various locations in Lausanne, Debiopharm Group moved its headquarters to its current situation. Today, the Debiopharm Group™ consists of 340 employees from 18 different countries and is supported by 400 external advisers.

Products & Pipeline

Products & Pipeline

Products developed by Debiopharm Group™ and brought to market:

• Oxaliplatin (Eloxatin®/Elplat®) for the treatment of colorectal cancer (marketed by Sanofi-Aventis)

• Triptorelin (Decapeptyl®/Trelstar®/Pamorelin®) for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer, endometriosis, uterine fibroids, precocious puberty, in vitro fertilization programs (as 1-month, 3-months, and 6-months formulations)(marketed by Ipsen Pharma in most EU countries, by Watson in the US, Mepha in Switzerland and various partners in Latin America)

• Triptorelin (Moapar®/Salvacyl®) for the treatment of severe sexual deviations (marketed by Ipsen Pharma).

Examples of drugs currently in clinical development: • Debio 025 - Alisporivir (out-licensed to Novartis worldwide with the exception of Japan) - being developed for the treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection^[1]

• Debio 0932 (in-licensed from Curis) - a small molecule inhibitor targeting Heat Shock Protein 90 (Hsp90) - expected to be registered for an oncology indication^[2]

• Debio 0827 (in-licensed from Pharmaleads SAS) - being developed for the treatment of chronic pain conditions^[3].

Examples of projects in pre-clinical or earlier stages of development:

• Debio 0719 (in-licensed from Kirin Brewery Company Ltd.) - a molecule inhibitor of the lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) receptors - being developed for cancer treatment^[4]

• Debio 0617 (in-licensed from Aurigene Discovery Technologies Ltd.) is being researched for the treatment of cancer^[5]

• Debio 0930 (in-licensed from Mercury Therapeutics, Inc.) - a small molecule activator of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) for the treatment of type 2 diabetes^[6]

• Debio 0826 (co-developed with the EPFL)- a program aimed at the identification of novel small molecules and peptides that have anti-tumoral, anti-metastatic and anti-angiogenic properties and fight cancer stem cells^[7]

• Debio 0929 (co-developed with MSM Protein Technologies - an antibody targeting a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) to be developed into a new oncology therapeutic drug^[8]

Awards

• 2011 - Debiopharm Group™ heads the HR ranking of the Bilan Magazine, SME category

• 2010 - Debiopharm Group™ was awarded the “Frost & Sullivan European Biopharmaceuticals Company of the Year Award”^[9]

• 2004 - Eloxatin® was awarded the Prix Galien

Sponsorship

Debiopharm Group™ has funded a chair at the EPFL^[10], and sponsors three scientific awards; the Debiopharm Life Sciences Award (EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland); the JCA (Japanese Cancer Association)-Mauvernay Award and the Debiopharm / Valais Life Sciences Award in Valais, Switzerland.

References

1. ^ Crabbé R et al., An evaluation of the cyclophilin inhibitor Debio 025 and its potential as a treatment for chronic hepatitis C. Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 2009 Feb;18(2):211-20..
2. ^ Press release: Debiopharm Group™ starts Phase I clinical trial with Debio 0932.
3. ^ Press release: Debiopharm and Pharmaleads sign license agreement for Debio 0827 or PL37 in treatment of chronic pain conditions.
4. ^ Press release: Debiopharm signs R&D and Commercialisation Agreement with Kirin for the development of Debio-0719 in Oncology
5. ^ Press release: Debiopharm and Aurigene sign licensing agreement for the development and commercialisation of Debio 0617, a novel inhibitor of an undisclosed oncology pathway
6. ^ Press release: Debiopharm Group and Mercury Therapeutics, Inc. sign an exclusive license agreement for the development and commercialisation of Debio 0930 - A first-in-class, small molecule activator of AMPK for treatment of type 2 diabetes.
7. ^ Press release: Debiopharm and EPFL Sign Research Project Agreement to Identify Inhibitors of Signalling Pathways Controlling Cell Fate For Cancer Treatment.
8. ^ Press release: Debiopharm and MSM Protein Technologies sign agreement for Research and Development of Debio 0929, a Novel Oncology Biologic.
9. ^ Press release: Frost & Sullivan Confers European Biopharmaceuticals Company of the Year Award on Debiopharm Group™.
10. ^ Press release: EPFL and Debiopharm take on cancer metastasis with a new Chair.

External links

• http://www.debiopharm.com/