[U] Power Alley Returns: Finnish Orion Pharma Expands Collaboration With Rahway -- $1.6B In Onco-Candidates Joint Venture, Outside Helsinki...

Two years ago, Orion began collaborating with Merck on enzyme-inhibition ideas thought potentially-useful in prostate cancers. That has turned out to be the case. In spades.

So, Rahway is both expanding the spend, inking a JV agreement and getting an exclusive license from Orion, in the field of oncology -- on several potential next-gen candidates. Here is Fierce's coverage of it, and a bit:

. . .Merck is expanding a research partnership with Orion into an exclusive licensing pact, putting more than $1.6 billion biobucks on the table for cancer candidates targeting CYP11A1, an enzyme important in steroid production.

The initial deal, inked back in 2022, centered on Orion’s opevesostat, a clinical-stage CYP11A1 inhibitor designed to treat prostate cancer. At the time, Merck dished out $290 million upfront to help co-develop and co-commercialize the oral, nonsteroidal drug.

Now, the companies are exercising the option to alter the pact into a licensing agreement, giving Merck exclusive global licensing rights to opevesostat and other CYP11A1 programs. . . .

Now you know -- and I should note that almost a decade ago now, we let you know that Orion had succeeded in making a generic version of Remicade -- and was stealing lots of market share all over the continent (from a prior J/V with J&J that Merck inherited from Schering-Plough). My, how times have changed. . . onward, grinning -- in spite of the day's more muddled, and even worrisome. . . news.



Updated -- Monday evening: This may be all I'll say, above the comment box, about today's Tangerine / Roberts opinion. For all his faults, George Washington (as memorialized in the above song -- from "Hamilton") did give us a priceless gift: the gift, of at least once every four years presenting a. . . peaceful transition of power opportunity. After a fair and open election. Roberts' opinion today misquoted the import of Washington's farewell, entirely. And Donald Trump threatened that gift, on January 6, 2021.

But one way or another, we -- we, the American people, one and all of good will. . . we will see regular, and peaceable, transitions of power, again. With or without Roberts, or Tangerine. We are better than these. . . few malign hacks. Out.

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