Bayer, Oxford University partner for new gynecological therapies

The deal focuses on endometriosis and uterine fibroids with the goal of discovering and developing new treatment options for these diseases.

Bayer HealthCare member of the executive committee and head of Global Drug Discovery Andreas Busch said the new partnership with one of the world’s leading institutions brings together the drug development expertise at the company with the disease and target expert knowledge at the University of Oxford.

"The collaboration provides us with the opportunity to jointly develop novel treatment options for women suffering from these debilitating diseases," Busch said.

The company’s drug discovery activities focus on the development of treatment options for endometriosis and uterine fibroids, which are still poorly understood diseases affecting millions of women across the world.

University of Oxford vice chancellor Andrew Hamilton said, "This collaboration draws on the particular skill sets of each partner in the development of innovative new therapies that could benefit millions of women around the world, and shows Oxford’s commitment to work jointly with industry to develop novel medicines."

As part of the deal, both the parties will contribute new drug targets and high quality technology infrastructures.

In addition, they will share responsibilities from basic research to early clinical trials in these two diseases.

The deal will see joint research projects carried out at the University of Oxford and at the Bayer HealthCare R&D Center in Berlin, Germany.

The company said that the deal will be for an initial period of two years but is open for extension for up to five years.

Bayer is eligible to license both targets and potential drug candidates exclusively and will then be responsible for any subsequent clinical development and commercialization, while the university will receive undisclosed milestone and royalty payments depending on the successful development and approval of potential drug candidates.