Epigenetic edge

Epizyme Inc. has been banking on the idea that potential partners will see the success of HDAC inhibitors as a good reason to place early bets on the company's histone methyltransferase drug discovery platform. Two recent deals with Eisai Co. Ltd. and GlaxoSmithKline plc say Epizyme has guessed right.

Eisai is buying into first-in-class compounds that inhibit enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2), an enzyme genetically linked to lymphoma, while GSK is collaborating with Epizyme to target an undisclosed set of histone methyltransferases (HMTs)...