GlaxoSmithKline signs smoking vaccine licensing agreement with Nabi
Filed under: Company News, GlaxoSmithKline
Not two months after the Swiss start-up Cytos's experimental anti-smoking vaccine failed in a mid-stage study, Nabi Biopharmaceuticals (NABI) and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) have signed a licensing agreement for Nabi's own anti-smoking vaccine, NicVAX. The deal, which could potentially be worth more than half a billion dollars, helped push NABI shares 25% higher.
NicVAX is an experimental therapy for the treatment of nicotine addiction and the prevention of smoking relapse. The vaccine is designed to stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies that bind to the nicotine molecules. Once bound together, they are too large to cross the blood-brain barrier. In this way, the nicotine is blocked from reaching the receptors in the brain that cause the highly-addictive pleasure sensation experienced by smokers and users of nicotine products. When nicotine is prevented from supplying them the sensation they crave, smokers have an easier time kicking the habit.
"If approved, this smoking cessation vaccine technology could be a novel solution to help the millions of smokers who want to stop smoking and remain abstinent; a habit that is well documented to be very hard to stop permanently," said Jean Stephenne, president of GSK Biologicals.
Indeed, smokers who try to stop often relapse. According to Nabi, pre-clinical and clinical data show that NicVAX can help people quit smoking. But what's also crucial is that because the antibodies remain in the blood stream for 6 to 12 months, Nabi believes the vaccine could also be effective in preventing smoking relapse. Currently available smoking cessation therapies, the companies said, have relapse rates that can be as high as 90% in the first year after a smoker quits.
A Potential Market of $2 Billion
Following that, Nabi started the first of two late-stage trials of NicVAX, with Glaxo holding the rights on development work past late-stage trials. In parallel with the Phase III studies, and independent of whether it exercises its option to in-license NicVAX, GSK will be developing a next-generation nicotine vaccine based on Nabi's intellectual property together with GSK's own technology.
The market for such a vaccine could be quite large. According to market research firm Datamonitor, the global market for smoking cessation is expected to reach $4.6 billion by 2016, and vaccines could account for $2 billion in sales.
Estimates of the number of smokers worldwide range from 1.2 billion to 1.3 billion, and it is agreed that tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in the world: 5.4 million deaths per year worldwide. In the U.S., an estimated 43.4 million adults currently smoke cigarettes, and tobacco smoking is responsible for approximately 443,000 deaths each year. The estimated direct and indirect costs associated with smoking exceed $193 billion annually. Nearly 75% of smokers in the U.S. report that they want to stop smoking, but fewer than 5 percent who try to do so remain tobacco-free for 3 to 12 months.Deal details
Nabi gets $40 million up front, allowing GSK the option to exclusively license NicVAX worldwide and a license to develop follow-on next-generation nicotine vaccines using Nabi's intellectual property. Nabi is then eligible to receive over $500 million in option fees and milestones for the vaccine and possible follow-on vaccines. Nabi also gets double-digit royalties on sales of NicVAX, as well as as royalties on next-generation nicotine vaccines should Glaxo exercise its option to in-license NicVAX.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-17-2009 @ 12:49AM
alex said...
my god people.. stop with getting shots already.. they are bad in the first place.. if you want to quit smoking.. get one of them detox kits.. i used the one where you fast for 3-5 days.. only drinking fruit juice(not from the store).. and the pills that come with it keep u not hungry.. and when you are done you'll be in better shape.. 5 lb less.. in the same time all the addictive content in your body will be gone.. i use to be addicted to bread.. that was gone too.. and you no longer feel hungry easly.. do that and you'll in better shape.. fast for 5 days and you can improve your immune system as well...
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11-17-2009 @ 1:07AM
Ray said...
I would like to the name of the detox product you used. Does it really work?
11-17-2009 @ 11:16AM
kelly said...
I also would like the name of the kit you used?
thanks
11-16-2009 @ 10:16PM
davidrep1 said...
I'm sure that the angry fatass racist neocon republican teabagging freaks will blame Obama for this nicotine addiction. Just give them a few minutes......
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11-16-2009 @ 10:52PM
hotrodqd said...
I'm more concerned with my child who's being scheduled by the school to recieve an h1n1 flu shot in a couple of weeks.....so which is it ......the 76 vaccine works and the new one doesnt ? and causes even more problems ??? somebody needs to come forward with the truth before the fact !!!!
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11-17-2009 @ 12:41PM
David said...
To answer your question I go back a couple weeks ago to what I read from the Center for DEasease Control which said there had been some 4000+ deaths without the vaccine and less than 40 after. None have been directly related to the vaccine
11-17-2009 @ 2:01PM
lynda said...
Oh heaven forbid, why are you letting those idiots inject your kids? You are the parents, its these injections that are causing 1 out of every 150 children to become Autistic. Can't you people put two and two together?
11-16-2009 @ 10:53PM
rob said...
it's Yobamas fault. Hee Hee.
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11-16-2009 @ 10:55PM
rob said...
Your right. It is Obamas fault.
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11-17-2009 @ 1:58AM
Gloria said...
What are the side effects of this vaccine? I am sure people will be told it is safe. HAH!! My doctor told me that being over weight will kill you faster than smoking. When you quit smoking you gain weight!
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11-17-2009 @ 7:07AM
pat said...
I smoked for thirty years and started coughing blood one day. Never lit back up, never used anything. Smoke free for the last 3 years. Still kicking.
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11-17-2009 @ 7:37AM
jef said...
Obama got me hooked on cigaretts!
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11-17-2009 @ 8:25AM
michele said...
I am so sick of hearing about all these vaccines!!! When are they gonna stop trying to make money off using us like guinea pigs?? They will make a shot for anything now to get the public to spend $ so they make billions! The bottom line is the gov. and drug co.'s don't give a rat's ass about the public, or our safety or health. They are driven by one thing, the almighty dollar, and I for one refuse to ever give in to their experimental drugs and vaccines which will prob. end up killing thousands of people. I will NEVER take the H1N1 shot and neither will my kids and I will NEVER give in to believing their scare tactics and propaganda! We have to take a stand before they start trying to take away all our freedom and make us line up for mandatory shots where we have no say whether we want them or not!
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11-17-2009 @ 8:41AM
themeeker said...
I gave up smoking cold turkey when both of my parents were diagnosed with cancer. I never looked at another cigarette, and these companies are making millions off of the poor addicts who don't have the proper incentive just to quit. Cold turkey is the only way, and it only hurts for about a week. I wouldn't give these companies my money...the hell with them.
If you don't want to smoke anymore and you want to quit, find the incentive anywhere you can and just do it. Yes, I gained weight, but I'd rather be heavy and breathing.
For all of you non-smokers, stop ridiculing the smokers. They are addicted, and you aren't telling them anything they don't already know. There's nothing more obnoxious than a militant non-smoker.
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11-17-2009 @ 1:38PM
Maureen said...
I am a smoker of over 50 years and defenitely see the harm it causes, but too stupid to quit. From talking to people who have quit after a few or many years, from what I understand when you really want to quit it isn't as difficult as we make it our to be. I have tried all the products out there including the pill and still smoke. Obviously I don't want to quit.
I really admire you and agree about the criticisms of non smokers, but the worst are the ones who quit and tell you to do the same.
11-17-2009 @ 1:20PM
s said...
i would not let my child have that flu shot i wouldnt get one myself
and this cig shot doesnt sound so safe either
i have been smoking for around 40 yrs and i would love to quit and when i first read this i thought YES FINALLY
but then when i read it all i thought NO WAY
i wouldnt take that shot either
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11-17-2009 @ 9:35AM
mike said...
I smoked for 38 years and while i don't recommend it, having a heart attack is a very good way to quit smoking. It is easy to kill yourself slowly when you aren't really seeing the effects that smoking is having on your body. When you have a heart attack and don't want to have another possibly fatal one or a stroke, it is a very good incentive to quit.
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11-17-2009 @ 10:04AM
Angela said...
I smoked for 13 yrs..quit cold turkey..I smoked a joint in replace of that cigarette, beem smoke free for 3 yrs..Marijuana has no side effects. Well, you might get a little hungry. Marijuana also relives your stress. That is how I quit smoking. Good luck to all!!
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11-17-2009 @ 11:04AM
Theresa said...
Listen it is in your head i smoked almost for 25 yrs i quit 9 month's ago cold turkey wen;t through alot of changes and is still going through them but i will never go back to them again........
11-17-2009 @ 11:07AM
International Drug Rehab said...
We can fight all addiction problems at www.InternationalDrugRehab.com
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