DeveloGen, Peptor deal

Peptor will be absorbed into DeveloGen in a stock merger of the two metabolic companies. The new entity will combine DeveloGen's discovery platforms, which are based on stem cell regeneration and phenotype screens for targets in diabetes, obesity and metabolic syndrome, with Peptor's clinical pipeline.

Peptor's lead compound is DiaPep277, a peptide analog of an hsp60 epitope in Phase II studies to treat Type I diabetes and latent autoimmune diabetes in adults. DiaPep277 is partnered with Aventis S.A. (AVE, Strasbourg, France). Peptor also has two late-stage preclinical products due to enter Phase I/II trials in 2004. ...