在过去几年中，日本安斯泰来公司不断加强其疫苗研究领域的实力，研发并在日本上市了流感疫苗新产品。现在公司决定继续扩大自己在该领域的影响力。安斯泰来公司和瑞士的ClearPath公司签订合作协议，在未来将建立新的疫苗研发公司以开发新的疫苗产品。目前安斯泰来公司旗下只有RSV Corporation一家类似性质的公司。RSV Corporation公司目前已经从瑞士生物技术公司Mymetics公司获得了呼吸道合胞体病毒疫苗，该疫苗目前尚处于二期验证试验，一旦实验完成，安斯泰来公司将重新评估这一疫苗的价值并开始着手进一步的研究和商业化进程。据了解安斯泰来公司与ClearPath公司的合作也是公司在8个月前着手进行研发业务重组的重要部分。
    而ClearPath公司也将在协议中扮演重要角色，公司将致力于获得各种疫苗研究领域的早期研究成果并通过重新评估后将这些疫苗候选者商业化。
    详细英文报道：
    Over the past few years, Astellas Pharma has strengthened its vaccine business by codeveloping a flu vaccine, licensing a cytomegalovirus candidate and introducing a new product in Japan. This week, Astellas once again looked beyond its walls to grow the unit, inking an alliance to build a portfolio of biotechs developing infectious disease vaccines.
    The partnership sees Astellas team up with ClearPath, a Switzerland-based company that helps develop early-stage drugs. Together, the companies plan to create a portfolio of biotechs to develop vaccine assets for Astellas but so far have only set up one such business--RSV Corporation. The company has licensed a respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine candidate from Swiss biotech Mymetics in a deal worth up to $82 million in upfront and post-proof-of-concept milestone payments.
    Astellas has committed to funding the vaccine until completion of the Phase IIb proof-of-concept trial. Once the vaccine has reached this stage, Astellas will reevaluate the project and may exercise its exclusive right to acquire RSV Corp. or further develop and commercialize the candidate. In an attempt to reach this point quickly and affordably, Astellas has assembled a mix of third-party support. Mymetics will continue to help with preclinical work and former Wyeth vaccine chief Dr. George Siber will lead RSV's development team.
    ClearPath will also play an active role in development. The company is made up of former executives from CROs, biopharma businesses, regulators and funding groups who now collectively help firms advance early-stage candidates to proof-of-concept. "Together we are harnessing our collective resources to accelerate development of this promising, early-stage asset and will replicate this scalable, outcome-driven model across future portfolio companies," ClearPath Chairman Chuck Finn said in a press release.
    Astellas' embrace of the ClearPath model comes 8 months after it revealed plans to shake up its R&D operation. The rejig saw Astellas shutter facilities and outline a different strategy for "unique and challenging" early-stage candidates. The approach--called the "Ex. (External/Expedite/Exploratory) Track"--was designed to flexibly use internal and external resources to more efficiently bring drugs to proof-of-concept. RSV looks like an early example of this model.