Collaboration Looks for Opportunities to Expand the Organon Biotech

Research Programs and Facilitate Links With China's Biotech Industry

    OSS, Netherlands and SAN DIEGO, Jan. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Organon, the
 human healthcare business of Akzo Nobel (Nasdaq:   AKZOY), announced today
 that it has signed a collaboration agreement with HUYA Bioscience
 International, LLC, (HUYA) to search for new, proprietary
 biopharmaceuticals or pharmaceutical compounds. As part of this
 collaboration, Organon has acquired an equity interest in HUYA, a
 biopharmaceutical company focused on developing Chinese biopharmaceutical
 products.
     HUYA, with offices in San Diego and Shanghai, identifies, licenses and
 develops Chinese drug candidates for commercialization in Western markets.
 Under the collaboration agreement, HUYA will support Organon in the
 sourcing and development of pharmaceutical or biopharmaceutical compounds
 in three specific therapeutic areas.
     "This is an important strategic opportunity for Organon. It is
 consistent with our research strategy to forge closer links with China's
 highly skilled and motivated scientists and significantly expands our own
 ongoing biotech research programs and capabilities," said David Nicholson,
 Executive Vice President Research and Development at Organon. "We are very
 excited by this investment and the prospect of closely collaborating with
 HUYA."
     Mireille Gingras, President and Chief Executive Officer of HUYA added,
 "We are delighted to share the Organon knowledge and harness their
 extensive expertise in drug development in three specific therapeutic
 areas. We believe this collaboration is the first one between a
 biopharmaceutical and biotech company to jointly identify and develop
 investigational drugs in China. HUYA is highly experienced and uniquely
 well positioned with our large network of life science contacts and
 operating history in China to capitalize on the emerging biotech industry
 there."
     No financial details of the transaction were disclosed. The
 announcement follows other research collaborations that Organon has entered
 into with other leading Chinese biotech companies such as Shanghai Genomics
 and HD Biosciences in the last year.
     About Organon
     Organon -- with shared head offices in Roseland, NJ, USA and Oss, The
 Netherlands -- creates, manufactures and markets innovative prescription
 medicines that improve the health and quality of human life. Through a
 combination of independent growth and business partnerships, Organon
 strives to remain or become one of the leading biopharmaceutical companies
 in each of its core therapeutic fields: fertility, gynecology, anesthesia
 and neuroscience. Research areas also include immunology and oncology.
     Organon products are sold in over 100 countries, of which more than 60
 have an Organon subsidiary. Organon is the human health care business unit
 of Akzo Nobel.
     About HUYA
     HUYA, with offices in San Diego and Shanghai, capitalizes on the
 explosive growth of the biotechnology industry in China. HUYA identifies,
 licenses and develops promising Chinese pharmaceuticals for
 commercialization in Western markets. Using its management team and
 advisors, HUYA lowers the product development risk through the
 comprehensive sourcing of proprietary preclinical and early clinical stage
 pharmaceuticals from China. HUYA partners the development of such
 innovative investigational pharmaceuticals with biotech companies in China
 so that the initial clinical research is performed in China. Later clinical
 development is expected to be completed in the United States and Europe.
 Further information about the company is available at www.huyabio.com.
     Organon Safe Harbor Statement*
     This press release may contain statements which address such key issues
 as growth strategy, future financial results, market positions, product
 development, pharmaceutical products in the pipeline, and product approvals
 of Organon. Such statements should be carefully considered, and it should
 be understood that many factors could cause forecasted and actual results
 to differ from these statements. These factors include, but are not limited
 to, price fluctuations, currency fluctuations, progress of drug
 development, clinical testing and regulatory approval, developments in raw
 material and personnel costs, pensions, physical and environmental risks,
 legal issues, and legislative, fiscal, and other regulatory measures.
 Stated competitive positions are based on management estimates supported by
 information provided by specialized external agencies. For a more
 comprehensive discussion of the risk factors affecting our business please
 see our Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the United States Securities
 and Exchange Commission, a copy of which can be found on the Akzo Nobel
 corporate website www.akzonobel.com.
     * Pursuant to the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act 1995.
 
     For further information please contact:
 
     Organon
     Monique Mols, director media relations
     NV Organon
     Tel: +31-412-665440
     Email: monique.mols@organon.com
 
     HUYA Bioscience International, LLC
     USA: Mireille Gingras, Ph.D.             China: Wen Chen, M.S., M.B.A.
     President and Chief Executive Officer    Director Business Development
     HUYA Bioscience International, LLC       HUYA Bioscience International
     (858) 350-6265                           wchen@huyabio.com
     mgingras@huyabio.com
     Web site: www.huyabio.com
 
     Media Contact:
     Karen Sparks
     (858) 455-5500
     Karen@mentus.com
 
 

SOURCE HUYA Bioscience International

Back to top