Baxter, Jerini to develop non-intravenous hemophilia therapy

By Elaine Rigoli

Tampa, Fla., May 18 - Baxter AG and Jerini AG said they have plans to develop a non-intravenous therapy for the treatment of hemophilia after an analysis that showed in-vitro and in-vivo synthetic lead molecules with promising pharmacological properties.

Scientists from Baxter and Jerini used tailored screening and analysis methods to design molecules with the ability to promote the coagulation of blood. Following further analysis, several principal molecules that showed strong activity in mouse models of hemophilia were selected for further development, according to a news release.

"We are encouraged by the identification of these molecules and the evaluation of the potential to treat hemophilia using a non-intravenous therapy with molecules that can be synthetically produced," Jerini chief executive officer Jens Schneider-Mergener said in the release.

Because blood-clotting proteins are large, relatively unstable molecules, current hemophilia therapies can only be administered intravenously, which is an invasive and technically demanding procedure, the release said.

It is presently not possible to administer these molecules by non-intravenous routes because of poor distribution or rapid inactivation of the molecule in the body. Therefore, potential non-intravenous therapy must be able to reach its target site quickly and effectively without being inactivated in the process, the release said.

Jerini is a pharmaceutical company based in Berlin, Germany, focusing on the discovery and development of peptide-based drugs.

Baxter, with U.S. headquarters in Deerfield, Ill., is a subsidiary of Baxter International, Inc.

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