Release Details

SAN DIEGO, March 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: NBIX) has announced today that it has signed an agreement to collaborate with Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories, the pharmaceutical division of American Home Products Corporation (NYSE: AHP), on the research, development and commercialization of compounds which modulate excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs) for the treatment of neurodegenerative and psychiatric diseases. EAATs are part of the family of neurotransmitter transporters and play a key role in regulating the actions of neurotransmitters and brain function.

The agreement, valued up to $78 million, provided that marketable products for these disorders result from the collaboration, includes sharing proprietary technologies between the two companies; funding for research, and milestones reached; plus royalties on sales from products resulting from the collaboration. Under the terms of the agreement Neurocrine expects to receive three to five years of funding for research and development. Neurocrine will also receive worldwide royalties on commercial sales of products which result from the collaboration. In addition, Wyeth will provide Neurocrine with access to chemical libraries for screening within the collaborative field.

"The Wyeth agreement is another major partnership milestone for us which extends our business strategy to seek proven pharmaceutical leaders to provide external funding and drug development expertise while sharing profitability for successful drug commercialization. In addition we may have the opportunity to participate in the promotion of this compound in North America," said Gary A. Lyons, President and Chief Executive Officer of Neurocrine Biosciences. "Working with a leading pharmaceutical developer, this collaboration accelerates Neurocrine's ability to develop and commercialize this critical new target, strengthening our franchise in neuroscience."

Background Information

Neurocrine obtained the licensing rights and patents to the EAAT modulator technology as part of its recent acquisition of Northwest Neurologic. Wyeth- Ayerst has participated in an exploratory EAAT research collaboration with NNL since August 1996.

Susan G. Amara, Ph.D., co-founder of NNL and a Howard Hughes Fellow at the Vollum Institute of the Oregon Health Sciences University was the first to clone the human forms of EAATs and has played a leading role in the characterization of the function of EAATs in the central nervous system. EAATs serve as novel targets for the development of drugs, which modulate glutamate concentrations in the brain. Neurotransmitter transporters play an important role in regulating the levels of neurotransmitters, and some of the most successful CNS drugs are ones which selectively target these transporters. Similarly, Neurocrine is targeting the EAATs to selectively modulate the levels of the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate to produce a therapeutic benefit in disorders where glutamate levels are abnormal such as in stroke, head trauma, retinal ischemia, schizophrenia and other neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders.

Neurocrine currently has five programs in clinical development for CNS related diseases. The Company's CRF receptor antagonist is currently in Phase II clinical development with its partner, Janssen Pharmaceutica, for anxiety/depression. Neurocrine and its partner, Novartis Pharmaceuticals, are conducting their second Phase II clinical trial with Neurocrine's APL compound in patients with multiple sclerosis. Neurocrine is also conducting a Phase I/II trial with NBI-3001 for glioblastoma (malignant brain tumors). In addition, Neurocrine recently filed an investigational new drug application, referred to as a Clinical Trials Certificate or CTX with the Medicines Control Agency in the United Kingdom for NBI-6024 for Type 1 diabetes. The Company expects to begin Phase I trials with this compound in the first quarter of 1999.

Neurocrine Biosciences is a leading neuroscience company focused on the discovery and development of novel therapeutics for neuropsychiatric, neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases and disorders. The Company's neuroscience, endocrine and immunology disciplines provide a unique biological understanding of the molecular interaction between central nervous, immune and endocrine systems for the development of therapeutic interventions for anxiety, depression, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, stroke, traumatic brain injury, multiple sclerosis, obesity and diabetes.

Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories, a division of American Home Products Corporation (NYSE: AHP), is a major research-oriented pharmaceutical company with leading products in the areas of women's health care, cardiovascular disease therapies, central nervous system drugs, anti-inflammatory agents, vaccines, and generic pharmaceuticals. American Home Products (NYSE: AHP) is one of the world's largest research-based pharmaceutical and health care products companies. It is a leader in the discovery, development, manufacturing and marketing of prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications. It is also a leader in vaccines, biotechnology, agriculture products and animal health care.

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In addition to historical facts, this press release contains forward looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward looking statements are risks and uncertainties associated with Neurocrine's research and development programs and business and finances including, but not limited to, risks and uncertainties associated with, or arising out of, drug discovery, pre-clinical and clinical development of products including risk that research may not generate development candidates, development candidates will not successfully proceed through early clinical trials or that in later stage clinical trials will not show that they are effective in treating humans; determinations by regulatory and governmental authorities; changes in relationships with strategic partners and dependence upon strategic partners for performance of clinical and commercialization activities under collaborative agreements including potential for any collaboration agreement to be terminated without any product success; uncertainties relating to patent protection and intellectual property rights of third parties; impact of competitive products and technological changes; availability of capital and cost of capital; and other material risks. A more complete description of these risks can be found in the Company's Form 10K for the year ended December 31, 1998 and the current form 10Q each of which should be read before making any investment in Neurocrine common stock. Neurocrine undertakes no obligation to update the statements contained in this press release after the date hereof.
SOURCE Neurocrine Biosciences
CONTACT: Elizabeth Foster or Gary Lyons of Neurocrine Biosciences, 619-658-7600; or Douglas Petkus of Wyeth-Ayerst, 610-971-4980