BioCentury
ARTICLE | Tools & Techniques

Renin to the bank

December 8, 2003 8:00 AM UTC

Although preclinical deals don't look to help Merck & Co. Inc.'s shaky profit prospects in the near term, the pharma company has found two projects that give it access to technology in hypertension and pain where other big players are bidding to compete.

In hypertension, MRK's decision to partner with Actelion Ltd. to co-develop renin inhibitors gets MRK access to a target that's of interest to big pharma because it acts upstream of existing hypertension medications...