GlaxoSmithKline Buys Sirtris for $720M
GSK just paid $720M (22.50/share or an 84% premium) for a company with one phase II compound that… well… wasn’t shy about publicizing itself. Take this quote from CEO Chris Westphal for instance, “the first group to have ever targeted an anti-aging gene to treat a disease of aging.” Aside from being not true (check out Elixir Pharmaceuticals now possibly defunct SIRT program), it is just arrogant and ignorant.
I don’t have a ton to say about this except that I’ll be happy not to every hear the name Sirtris in the popular press every again… well except maybe for the phrase, “that Sirtris deal was a bust.” It’s not that I hate the company personally, but their constant drumbeat in the popular press was terribly annoying. The main target of their lead compound resveratrol (just initiated phase II trials in India), a SIRT1 activator, was discovered as the mechanistic backbone responsible for the anti-aging / longevity effects of caloric restriction. This is, of course, very sexy. In the last year alone, I’ve read at least a dozen Sirtris puff pieces (Science and Nature not withstanding, I’ve also read pieces in the NYT, Business Week and The Economist.) Maybe it’s because I’m a cynic by nature but even a cursory, 15 minute research session would lead to the following facts:
- The target has not been shown to increase lifespan in any normal mammals
- There are many sirtuins… activating only SIRT1 has not been shown to do anything in mammals
- Some data in yeast show activating SIRTs actually decreases lifespan
- There is much data to suggest resveratrol doesn’t work through sirtuins at all
- “Aging” is not a disease recognized by the FDA so there should to be a mechanistic reason for choosing an alternate indication.
-The compound FAILED the only test the FDA cares about for the type-2 diabetes indication: reduction in HbA1c!!
All these facts in less than 15 minutes of research. Why GSK paid $720M is totally beyond my comprehension. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall during those discussions. Presumably a bidding war with Pfizer or BMS, or maybe they just wanted to control the patent space. Who knows. I’ll check the want-ads in a year… maybe they’ll be looking for a bright, young and eager BD guy to clean up the mess.
