Seeking Novel Drugs to Treat Autoimmune Diseases

Asahi Kasei Pharma, a global pharmaceutical company, is seeking promising novel drugs for the treatment of a wide range of autoimmune diseases. Specifically, the team is interested in drug candidates that target autoimmune disease pathways, including those that have potential to be applied to a variety of diseases.

Approaches of Interest:

• Asahi Kasei Pharma is open to different modalities including small molecules, peptides, antibodies, proteins and nucleotides 
• Opportunities where the drug candidate has already been identified are of highest interest 
• Data or theories that indicate the drug candidate is superior to existing drugs/therapies is desirable 

Out of Scope:

• Drugs that manage the symptoms of autoimmune diseases 
• Opportunities related to cell therapy, probiotics, gene editing and AAV therapy, diagnostic products and medical devices 
• Drug screening libraries and drug repurposing 
• Novel NSAIDs and JAKi are out of scope, however, JAKi that have dual inhibition, including the JAK/BTK inhibitor, remain of interest 

Developmental Stages of Interest:

• Opportunities from early discovery phase to late preclinical stage are of interest 
• Drug candidate efficacy should at least be confirmed in an in vitro study that reflects the treatment concept 
• Confirmation of the drug candidate’s effectiveness in an in vivo study using an animal model is desirable 
• Research and development programs after target validation can be applicable 

Submission Information

Submission of one page, 200-300 word briefs are encouraged, along with any optional supplementary information e.g. relevant publications. Submissions should include information regarding unpublished/filed/published patents, if any. In submitting to this campaign, you confirm that your submission contains only non-confidential information. 

Opportunity for Collaboration

Our client is open to a range of collaboration opportunities, with the most appropriate outcome being decided on a case-by-case basis. Example outcomes include licensing assets and research collaborations.