Trius & Bayer Form Strategic Collaboration

Trius Therapeutics, Inc. and Bayer Pharma AG recently announced they have signed an exclusive agreement to develop and commercialize Trius’ lead Phase III antibiotic, torezolid phosphate (torezolid), in China, Japan, and all other countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East, excluding North and South Korea. Under the collaboration agreement, Trius retains full development and commercialization rights outside the licensed territory, including the US, Canada, and the European Union.

In exchange for development and commercialization rights in its licensed territory, Bayer will pay Trius $25 million upfront and will support approximately 25% of the future development costs of torezolid required for global approval in acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI) and pneumonia. In addition, Trius is eligible to receive up to $69 million upon the achievement of certain development, regulatory, and commercial milestones and will receive double-digit royalties on net sales of torezolid in the licensed territory.

“Bacterial infectious diseases represent one of the largest therapeutic areas in China and continue to grow rapidly there and in other emerging markets. This collaboration is a key element in our strategy of bringing innovative medicines to patients, especially in emerging markets,” said Dr. Jorg Reinhardt, Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer HealthCare.

“Bayer’s commitment to the infectious disease area and their depth and breadth of experience in these markets makes them an ideal partner for Trius,” added Jeffrey Stein, PhD, President and CEO of Trius. “At the same time, consistent with our strategy, we have retained rights to the US and EU markets where life-threatening infections from MRSA and other gram-positive pathogens continue to be a significant concern.”

Trius Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development, and commercialization of innovative antibiotics for life-threatening infections. The company’s lead investigational drug, torezolid phosphate, is an IV and orally administered second-generation oxazolidinone in Phase III clinical development for the treatment of ABSSSI, the first such trial to be initiated under a Special Protocol Assessment (SPA). Trius holds an exclusive license to torezolid phosphate for territories outside of North and South Korea from Dong-A Pharmaceuticals. In addition to the company’s torezolid phosphate clinical program, it is currently conducting three preclinical programs using its proprietary discovery platform to develop antibiotics to treat infections caused by gram-negative bacteria.