AstraZeneca and Abbott team up to launch combination therapy

Britain’s second largest pharmaceutical company, AstraZeneca, has entered into a collaboration with Abbott to develop and market a new anti-cholesterol combination treatment in the US.

The new product will combine AstraZeneca’s statin Crestor with Abbott’s next generation fenofibrate, currently in phase III trials. Also, the two companies will evaluate a combination of Crestor and the currently-marketed fenofibrate, branded as TriCor.

Both AstraZeneca and Abbott will split the development costs. Abbott will deliver the clinical trials, while AstraZeneca will apply for and hold the new drug application, with a full regulatory submission anticipated during 2009.

Tony Zook, AstraZeneca’s executive vice-president, North America, stated: “This represents an important further step in broadening the full, long-tem potential of Crestor for the treatment of lipid disorder.”

The two drugs working in combination will be designed to raise “good” HDL-cholesterol levels, while lowering “bad” LDL-cholesterol levels as well as triglyceride levels, which are forms of fats and lipids obtained from foods. While TriCor has been shown to raise HDL-cholesterol levels, Crestor reduces LDL-cholesterol levels.

Abbott’s vice-president of global pharmaceutical clinical development said: “Increasing evidence shows that addressing these three key lipid targets helps to protect patients from heart disease.”

“This collaboration has the potential to provide physicians and patients with the first statin and fibrate combination in a single pill to comprehensively manage lipids,” he added.

Crestor sales increased by 42 per cent in the first quarter of 2006, bringing in revenues of $387 million. Abbott reported TriCor sales of $205 million during its first quarter.

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