Lilly to resume sole rights to new diabetes therapy

Lilly has announced that it will be ending its collaboration with Boehringer Ingelheim on the development of the investigational novel basal insulin analogue LY2605541.

After taking independent strategic portfolio considerations into account, the partners have decided that Lilly will reassume sole worldwide development and commercialisation rights to LY2605541, though the wider diabetes collaboration between the firms will continue.

Lilly also announced plans for the 2013 and 2014 initiation of the remainder of the pre-planned clinical trials for LY2605541, which will help to demonstrate the therapy's safety and efficacy, while also supporting regulatory submissions.

Enrique Conterno, president of Lilly Diabetes, said: "If approved, this basal insulin analogue will be an important addition to the Lilly portfolio as we work to provide a broad portfolio of diabetes medicines to our customers."

Boehringer Ingelheim and Lilly have been working together on diabetes since January 2011 in one of the largest ever alliances among two pharmaceutical companies in a single therapeutic area.

The collaboration has yielded positive results in the development of Tradjenta, a  DPP-4 inhibitor used to improve glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes.