Bristol-Myers Squibb and Nordic Bioscience Announce Collaboration for Fibrosis Biomarker Technology
April 17 2017 - 6:59AM
Business Wire
Collaboration to develop translational
biomarkers for fibrotic diseases, including non-alcoholic
steatohepatitis (NASH)
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) and Nordic Bioscience, a
Danish company specializing in biomarker technologies, today
announced a collaboration agreement to develop biomarker technology
to potentially aid in the diagnosis and monitoring of fibrotic
diseases including Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Nordic
Bioscience has over 25 years’ experience in biomarker development
and clinical trials with extensive expertise in rheumatology and
fibrosis. A biomarker is a molecule that may be used to diagnose a
disease, or predict disease progression and indicate response to
therapy.
“Addressing the significant need for better diagnostic and
monitoring tools in fibrotic diseases is a key element of
Bristol-Myers Squibb’s fibrosis strategy to help patients suffering
from these debilitating conditions,” said Mike Burgess, head of
Cardiovascular, Fibrosis and Immunoscience Development,
Bristol-Myers Squibb. “We continue to invest in innovative
approaches to develop more precise methods to diagnose disease and
monitor progression and we are pleased to partner with Nordic
Bioscience and leverage their vast experience in biomarker
development.”
“There is a big unmet need in medical and drug development for
simple non-invasive diagnostic, early proof of efficacy of
intervention and prognostic biomarkers in the NASH field. Nordic
Bioscience is very proud to enter into this collaboration which
will benefit the fibrosis field by advancing the research in
fibrosis biomarkers for the benefit of patients,” said Morten
Karsdal, CEO of Nordic Bioscience.
Nordic Bioscience is a leader in the measurement, development
and validation of assays for collagens, elastins and laminins as
biomarkers of extracellular matrix (ECM) activity. The company
invented C-terminal telopeptide (CTX), a biomarker that
non-invasively identifies osteoporosis patients with a high rate of
bone loss and can be used to assess response to osteoporosis
therapy.
Under the terms of the agreement, Bristol-Myers Squibb and
Nordic Bioscience will collaborate in the development of
translational biomarkers and diagnostics for the evaluation of NASH
in pre-clinical models of fibrotic diseases and in clinical
settings.
About Fibrosis and NASH
Fibrotic diseases are characterized by chronic inflammation that
leads to excess collagen deposition and scar formation in an organ
or tissue. This scarring response compromises function and
ultimately leads to organ failure. Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis
(NASH) may progress to cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma (liver
cancer) and liver failure, and is expected to be the leading cause
of liver transplant by 2030. The severity of liver fibrosis (scar
tissue in the liver) is measured on a scale of F0 (normal) to F4
(cirrhosis) in a liver biopsy specimen. Approximately 20 million
patients in the U.S. have NASH, and there are currently no approved
pharmacological treatments.
About Fibrosis at Bristol-Myers
Squibb
Bristol-Myers Squibb is committed to the discovery and
development of medicines for the treatment of fibrosis, the buildup
of scar tissue that impacts organ function. We are advancing a
robust pipeline of investigational compounds to address areas of
high unmet need in fibrosis, including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis
(NASH), a condition with no approved treatment options that may
lead to liver fibrosis and/or cirrhosis; and idiopathic pulmonary
fibrosis (IPF), a progressive lung disease with a high mortality
rate. We are researching multiple mechanisms and approaches to make
the biggest impact on patients.
About Bristol-Myers
Squibb
Bristol-Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose
mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines
that help patients prevail over serious diseases. For more
information about Bristol-Myers Squibb, visit us at BMS.com or
follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and Facebook.
About Nordic Bioscience
Nordic Bioscience is a Danish Biotech company dedicated to
preclinical and clinical drug development, specializing in
precision medicine using unique biomarker technologies. The company
has more than 25 years’ experience in biomarker development and
clinical trials and has acquired extensive expertise in
rheumatology and fibrosis. Combining experience in preclinical and
clinical research enables Nordic Bioscience to help provide a
faster and smarter detection of signals of the potential clinical
viability of drug candidates. For more information about Nordic
Bioscience, visit us at http://www.nordicbioscience.com/
Bristol-Myers Squibb Forward-Looking Statement
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” as that
term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995 regarding the research, development and commercialization of
pharmaceutical products. Such forward-looking statements are
based on current expectations and involve inherent risks and
uncertainties, including factors that could delay, divert or change
any of them, and could cause actual outcomes and results to differ
materially from current expectations. No forward-looking
statement can be guaranteed. Among other risks, there can be
no guarantee that investigational biomarkers or assays discussed in
this release will be successfully developed or approved for any of
the indications described in this release. Forward-looking
statements in this press release should be evaluated together with
the many uncertainties that affect Bristol-Myers Squibb's business,
particularly those identified in the cautionary factors discussion
in Bristol-Myers Squibb's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2014 in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and
our Current Reports on Form 8-K. Bristol-Myers Squibb
undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking
statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170417005244/en/
Bristol-Myers SquibbMedia:Ken Dominski,
609-252-5251ken.dominski@bms.comorLisa McCormick Lavery,
609-252-7602lisa.mccormicklavery@bms.comorInvestors:Tim
Power, 609-252-7509timothy.power@bms.comorBill Szablewski,
609-252-5894william.szablewski@bms.comorNordic
BioscienceMorten Karsdal, +45 44547794mk@nordicbio.com
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