Takeda announced on April 15 that it has ended its collaboration with Veritas In Silico, a partnership focused on developing small-molecule drugs targeting mRNA. The decision marks another instance of the Japanese pharmaceutical company reducing its number of research collaborators.
The end of the partnership is notable as it reflects Takeda's ongoing efforts to adjust its research and development strategy. The company said the split was amicable, and both parties will continue discussions about possible future uses for findings from their joint work.
According to a news release issued by Veritas In Silico on April 13, “While the Research had yielded certain results to date, following discussions with Takeda and VIS, the Research shall be terminated amicably.” No specific reasons for ending the project were provided.
A spokesperson for Takeda told Fierce Biotech that “While we would refrain from commenting on the details of individual research activities, we believe that the approximately three years of joint drug discovery research to date have provided us concrete learnings,” confirming that relations between Takeda and Veritas In Silico remain positive.
The collaboration began in June 2023. Details regarding financial terms or targeted disease indications were not disclosed by either company.
This move follows other recent changes at Takeda. Just over a week earlier, Takeda ended its relationship with Denali Therapeutics by returning rights to DNL593, an experimental treatment for frontotemporal dementia currently in Phase 1/2 trials. Denali plans to continue developing DNL593 independently.
Last October, Takeda also withdrew from cell therapy development—laying off employees and seeking an external partner for its platform—after having previously expanded into this area through acquisitions and partnerships. However, during this period of consolidation, Takeda has also formed new alliances such as a deal worth up to $11.4 billion with Innovent for antibody-drug conjugates targeting cancer and a multi-year engagement with Nabla Bio focused on early-stage pipeline development using artificial intelligence.
