Boehringer collaboration could advance first-in-class schizophrenia treatments

Boehringer Ingelheim and Sosei Group Corporation (Sosei Heptares) have agreed a new partnership, which could result in the development of a new schizophrenia treatment targeting GPR52.

The companies will work to develop and commercialise Sosei Heptares’ portfolio of first-in-class GPR52 agonists, a novel G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) target, with the aim of providing a novel precision treatment that addresses positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia. Boehringer Ingelheim highlighted that GPR52 is a potential emerging therapeutic target for multiple neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders.

Terms of the agreement

As part of the collaboration, Boehringer Ingelheim has the exclusive option to license Sosei Heptares’ portfolio of GPR52 agonists once the ongoing Phase I, the subsequent Phase Ib trial and further Phase II enabling activities with HTL0048149 are completed. HTL0048149 began first-in-human clinical trials in 2023, according to an announcement by Sosei in July 2023.

Sosei Heptares will receive an upfront payment of €25 million. Alongside this, the company is eligible for an option exercise payment of €60 million and further milestone payments of up to €670 million, plus customary tiered royalties for a clinical stage asset on future Boehringer Ingelheim product sales.

The small molecule treatment HTL0048149 is a first-in-class GPR52 agonist with a novel mechanism of action. Sosei Heptares’ treatment aims to address the significant population of schizophrenia patients who are unresponsive to existing treatments or who cannot tolerate some of the side effects of antipsychotics, Boehringer Ingelheim noted.

Supporting advancement of novel schizophrenia therapeutics

“We are very excited to enter this partnership with Sosei Heptares with this novel approach, which aims to address a huge unmet need of those living with schizophrenia,” commented Hugh Marston, Global Head CNS Discovery Research at Boehringer Ingelheim. 

“This collaboration highlights the significant potential GPR52 has shown in preclinical research as a novel, first in class target for the treatment of schizophrenia and related neurological disorders… Together, we will focus on accelerating the development of this highly innovative programme which is currently in a Phase I clinical research study,” Matt Barnes, President of Heptares Therapeutics and Head of UK R&D at Sosei Heptares commented.