????分析師認(rèn)為，互為對手的大型制藥公司攜手合作實際上可能會提高它們在市場上的競爭力。舉例來說，參與本次合作的默克正在和其他幾家公司爭相開發(fā)一種抗腫瘤創(chuàng)新藥，人們稱之為抗程序性死亡因子-1（PD-1）藥物。最近的研究表明，這種藥物能有效治療多種癌癥。摩根大通（J.P. Morgan）私人銀行業(yè)務(wù)美國股票策略團隊主管史蒂文?里斯說：“在我們的記憶中，已經(jīng)有很長時間沒有見過這么令人激動的抗癌藥物了。”

????但投資管理公司T. Rowe Price分析師吉亞德?巴克瑞認(rèn)為，百時美施貴寶似乎處于領(lǐng)先位置，因為這家公司開始后期試驗的時間要早于默克。為了趕上施貴寶，默克向其他制藥公司尋求幫助，后者的癌癥治療方案可能改進默克的藥物，盡管這樣做可能意味著要和它們分享最終產(chǎn)品帶來的收入。默克研發(fā)總裁羅杰?珀爾馬特在一次電話會議上說：“至于是要雙管齊下（指默克的產(chǎn)品既用于單藥治療又用于聯(lián)合治療）還是與他人合作，顯然，最好是能雙管齊下，但不能指望完全靠自己發(fā)現(xiàn)所有的東西。”

????里斯指出，另一方面，獨自開發(fā)可能帶來的風(fēng)險是，在估算規(guī)模為300億美元的PD-1市場上全面敗北。里斯推測，隨著PD-1藥品獲準(zhǔn)投入使用，這個市場的規(guī)模將會倍增。他說：“與人共享、從而成為更可靠的競爭者總比只顧抱著現(xiàn)有的收獲、結(jié)果坐失良機要好。”里斯還認(rèn)為，這樣的合作可能促成新的并購：“當(dāng)它們意識到兼并可能產(chǎn)生多大的協(xié)同效應(yīng)后，最初的合作伙伴關(guān)系最終可能以一家公司收購另一家公司收場。”

????投資者似乎認(rèn)同這樣的合作策略——公布這項決定后，默克的股價在當(dāng)天上午上漲了2%。巴克瑞說：“如果默克想和百時美施貴寶抗衡，這樣的合作就有可能讓它獲得一些優(yōu)勢。”

????這并不是制藥企業(yè)為了更快地推出患者所需的治療藥物，第一次聯(lián)手開發(fā)產(chǎn)品。但它們酷愛獨家產(chǎn)品，但有時這會成為一個障礙。柯林斯曾為NIH設(shè)想過規(guī)模更大的合作，參與的公司可能多達十幾家，目標(biāo)是尋找治療所有疾病的線索，而不僅僅是幾種疾病。他說：“制藥商的熱情并不高。”NIH合作項目原本還計劃把精神分裂癥作為一個重點，“但到了要拿出真金白銀的時候，參與者的整體規(guī)模卻不足以讓計劃付諸實施”——主動參加的制藥公司還不到四家。

????不過，專家們都認(rèn)為大型制藥商的合作意愿正在增強。這幾年，柯林斯還一直在溫和地鼓勵制藥公司“打開藥品冷藏柜”，把研發(fā)失敗的藥品交給科學(xué)家，后者希望測試一下這些藥品是否還有其他用途。“五年前首次提出這個想法時，有人告訴我，‘制藥公司永遠都不會那樣做。它們絕不會放棄自己投入了這么多資金的藥品。’”

????但最終，八家大型制藥企業(yè)還是拿出了58種它們已經(jīng)放棄的藥品供人研究。去年夏天，NIH批準(zhǔn)其中的九種藥品進入試驗階段，投入的資金為2000萬美元。賦予它們新用途的優(yōu)勢在于，這些產(chǎn)品已經(jīng)通過了安全性測試，因此可以直接進入后期試驗，從而將后備產(chǎn)品的研制時間從通常的14年壓縮到了短短兩年。柯林斯說，最快到今年年底，“我們就能知道是否能有藥品研制成功。”（財富中文網(wǎng)）

????譯者：Charlie?????????

????Analysts say that the teamwork between Big Pharma rivals might actually make them more competitive in the market. Merck's collaboration, for one, came at a time when it was racing several other companies to develop a first-of-its-kind cancer therapy, known as an anti-PD-1 drug, that has recently shown success treating a variety of tumors. "We haven't seen anything this exciting in cancer drugs that we can remember in a long time," says Steven Rees, head of U.S. equity strategy at J.P. Morgan Private Bank.

????But Bristol-Myers appeared to be winning, beating Merck to advanced trials, says T. Rowe Price biotech analyst Ziad Bakri. To catch up, Merck sought help from other companies whose cancer treatments might enhance its own -- even though it might mean splitting revenue from the final product. "With respect to owning both vs. collaborations, well, obviously, under the best circumstances, you'd like to own both, but you can't expect to discover everything yourself," Merck's president of research and development, Roger Perlmutter, said on a conference call.

????Going it alone, on the other hand, would be to risk losing out on an estimated $30 billion market for PD-1 altogether, says Rees, who suspects that the market will multiply as more uses of the drug are approved. "Sharing and being a more credible competitor is better than sticking with what you have and missing out," he says. And, he adds, such collaborations might spur more mergers and acquisitions: "What might start as a partnership might end as a company actually buying another company, when you see how many synergies could be realized."

????Investors seemed to support the team strategy, sending Merck's shares 2% higher on the morning of the announcement. "If Merck wants to compete with Bristol-Myers, all of these collaborations have the potential to give it some kind of advantage," Bakri says.

????It's not the first time that pharmaceutical companies have combined their drugs to bring needed treatments to patients faster, but their penchant for exclusivity has sometimes been a roadblock. Collins had envisioned a larger NIH collaboration between more than 10 companies that would seek clues to treating all diseases, not just a few. "Companies were not as enthusiastic about that," he says. Originally, the project planned to also focus on schizophrenia. "But when it came down to pulling out wallets and putting money down on the table, there wasn't a critical mass of companies to make it work," as fewer than four volunteered.

????Still, experts agree that Big Pharma's willingness to work together is growing. For several years, Collins has also been gently prodding companies to "open their freezers" of tried-and-failed drugs to scientists who want to test them for other possible applications. "Five years ago when this idea started to surface, I was told, 'Oh, companies will never do that. They won't be comfortable giving up a compound they've invested so much money in.'"

????But eight large pharmaceutical companies eventually provided 58 abandoned drug compounds for research, and last summer, the NIH green-lit trials for nine of them with $20 million. The advantage to the repurposing is that because the drugs have already passed safety tests, they can skip straight to more advanced trials, shortening the typical 14-year pipeline to as little as two: As early as later this year, "We'll be able to see whether we've hit any home runs," Collins says.