Collaboration between Sanofi and Joslin Diabetes Center to focus on new drugs for diabetes

Wednesday, 20 June 2012

Building on Joslin's experience in diabetes research and care, the collaboration will focus on four key areas within diabetes and related metabolic disorders to identify potential new biologics or small drug candidates for the treatment of late complications of diabetes and new insulin analogs with more targeted efficacy. Additionally, research will address the challenges of insulin resistance and personalized medicine, with the overall aim of improving the lives of people living with diabetes.

Dr. Elias Zerhouni, President, Global R&D, Sanofi, commented: "This collaboration brings together two important forces in diabetes therapy - Sanofi Diabetes and Joslin Diabetes Center - which have the potential to define new pathways towards better understanding the nature of this disease and developing new treatments. This collaboration further demonstrates Sanofi's commitment to improving diabetes management and care through the development of innovative research strategies."

Under the terms of the agreement, Sanofi has options to commercialize the results of the research. Both parties will have access to intellectual property for internal research use.

C. Ronald Kahn, M.D., Mary K. Iacocca Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Chief Academic Officer of Joslin Diabetes Center, who will head the alliance team, added: "This opportunity brings together experts from the pharmaceutical industry with our team of scientists and clinicians, who are devoted to research and clinical care for diabetes and related metabolic disorders. The result should be a very exciting collaboration with great potential for innovative research that will participate to advance diabetes treatment and patient care."

Financial details of the collaboration were not disclosed.

About Joslin Diabetes Center
Joslin Diabetes Center is the world's leading diabetes research and clinical care organization. At Joslin, the world’s best researchers and clinicians prevent, treat and strive to cure diabetes and its complications. Among the Harvard Medical School Affiliated institutions, Joslin is one of the most research-intensive academic medical centers and is unique in its sole focus on diabetes. Their discoveries improve the lives of people with diabetes worldwide and offer the greatest hope for a cure. Founded in 1898 by a single physician, Elliott P. Joslin, M.D., Joslin today has more than 600 employees in three major divisions: Joslin Research, a highly collaborative team of more than 300 people with 41 faculty level investigators undertaking the largest research program aimed at preventing and curing type 1 and type 2 diabetes and their long-term complications and more than 120 MD and PhD fellows in training; Joslin Clinic, the world's first and most respected diabetes care facility, which cares for 23,000 adult and pediatric patients a year, focusing on aggressive and comprehensive patient care from highly specialized and multi-skilled experts; and Joslin Strategic Initiatives, which develops and markets innovative programs, products and services that expand the availability of Joslin knowledge and expertise to patients and clinicians around the globe to improve the quality of diabetes care.

About Sanofi Diabetes
Sanofi strives to help people manage the complex challenge of diabetes by delivering innovative, integrated and personalized solutions. Driven by valuable insights that come from listening to and engaging with people living with diabetes, the Company is forming partnerships to offer diagnostics, therapies, services, and devices including innovative blood glucose monitoring systems. Sanofi markets both injectable and oral medications for people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Investigational compounds in the pipeline include an injectable GLP-1 agonist being studied as a single agent, in combination with basal insulin, and/or in combination with oral antidiabetic agents.

About Sanofi
Sanofi, a global and diversified healthcare leader, discovers, develops and distributes therapeutic solutions focused on patients' needs. Sanofi has core strengths in the field of healthcare with seven growth platforms: diabetes solutions, human vaccines, innovative drugs, consumer healthcare, emerging markets, animal health and the new Genzyme. Sanofi is listed in Paris (EURONEXT: SAN) and in New York (NYSE: SNY).