Global American pharmaceuticals manufacturer Johnson & Johnson bared plans to take part in the development of treatments for Alzheimer’s disease through a $1 billion investment with Ireland-based drugmaker Elan Corp.

This investment will secure the New Brunswick, NJ-based Johnson & Johnson with an 18.4 percent stake in Elan, a neuroscience-based biotechnology company that develops drugs and treatments for unmet health needs, including Alzheimer’s disease.

Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative brain disorder that primarily affects older persons. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, there are 4 million Americans presently afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease. And this number is expected to increase to approximately 14 million by the year 2050.

In a joint statement, both companies announced that the venture would lead to the creation of a new company that will manage drugs developed through the partnership of Johnson & Johnson, Elan, and Wyeth to find a cure for the degenerative disease. This will include an intravenous drug to be used in the final stage of development as well as a vaccine. The new company will guarantee Elan a 49.9 percent ownership.

Elan and Wyeth have been collaborating in order to produce a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease using the “beta amyloid hypothesis” which relies on blocking beta amyloid generation as the key for successful treatment of Alzheimer’s patients.

Initially, Johnson & Johnson has committed over $500 million for developing the drug bapineuzumab, which works by slowing the disease’s progression. Already, the Alzheimer’s treatment unit has four drug candidates in preclinical and clinical testing.

Founded in 1886, Johnson & Johnson is well respected for its corporate responsibility efforts. It was ranked No. 1 by Barron’s Magazine as the world’s most respected company and made history as the first corporate recipient of the U.S. State Department’s Benjamin Franklin Award for Public Diplomacy.

Company brands such as Band-Aid, Tylenol, Johnson’s baby products, Neutrogena, and Clean & Clear are a fixture in homes around the world.

Post Author: admin

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 17th, 2009 at 1:31 pm and is filed under Corporate News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.