The collaboration, financial terms of which were not made public, will focus on the development of Antares’ Vibex pressure-assisted injection device for the delivery of the RA drug methotrexate.
Quebec-headquartered Uman will develop the methotrexate formulation and supply it in prefilled syringes to Antares for clinical development and, the firms hope, subsequent commercial launch.
In return for its development and manufacturing support Uman retains all rights to commercialise Vibex MTX, the proposed name of the new product, in Canada.
Antares CEO Paul Wotton explained that formation of the partnership had been motivated by the recognition of a significant need and opportunity in the RA and wider autoimmune disease sector.
"Our market research with physicians shows that most would use methotrexate by the parenteral route more frequently, thereby accelerating market growth, if provided with a simple-to-use and secure system that enabled patients to reliably and comfortably self-inject the drug.”
Sylvain Duvernay, Uman’s CEO, was equally upbeat about the new partnership, explaining that it is in keeping with the firm’s wider product development strategy.