Bayer HealthCare has acquired Maxygen’s hemophilia program, including MAXY-VII, its  recombinant factor VIIa (rFVIIa) drug candidate. According to Bayer, MAXY-VII is expected to enter Phase I clinical testing in the third quarter of 2008. MAXY-VII is being positioned by Bayer as an improved rFVIIa product for the treatment of hemophilia patients, including those with inhibitors.

“MAXY-VII has the potential to be an important expansion of therapeutic options for people living with hemophilia and we are pleased to add this to our global development portfolio,” said Gunnar Riemann, PhD, member of the Executive Committee of Bayer HealthCare. “Our scientists are actively collaborating with researchers in academia and biotechnology firms to leverage novel research platforms. Access to Maxygen’s MolecularBreeding™ technology provides us with another tool to expand our product pipeline.”

Also included in the agreement is the license to use Maxygen’s MolecularBreeding™ technology, a novel research platform for exploiting gene targets. It is a gene shuffling process that allows scientists to exploit gene variation, which can result in unique drug targets or novel therapeutic protein candidates.
 
Source: Bayer news release dated July 2, 2008