UCB SA - BNP Paribas Fortis

(a) a strategic focus on severe CNS and immunology diseases;
(b) a dual pipeline approach to research and development encompassing both new chemical entities
and new biological entities;
(c) a world-wide research and development staff consisting of approximately 1,400 employees;
(d) two major research sites located at Braine-l’Alleud (Belgium) and Slough (United Kingdom);
(e) five development teams located at Atlanta, Georgia (USA), Braine-l’Alleud (Belgium), Monheim
(Germany), Slough (United Kingdom) and Tokyo (Japan);
(f) a focus on molecules in development for the treatment of epilepsy, respiratory diseases, Crohn’s
disease, rheumatoid arthritis, bone loss diseases, systemic lupus erithymatosus, psoriasis and
other severe diseases; and
(g) UCB NewMedicines leading partnerships with academia and other leading drug discovery
organizations as well as a continuing search for further partnerships through which the UCB
Group can utilise its expertise, particularly in antibody-based drug research and development, to
optimise the development and marketing of new pharmaceuticals.
(b) Discovery Technologies
As a result of its dual-pipeline strategy encompassing both new chemical entities and new biological
entities, the UCB Group is able to address disease pathways at different points in the targeted therapy
areas.
New chemical entities (“NCEs”) are used to treat a wide range of diseases. Such drugs usually have a
molecular weight of less than 500 daltons and are most often designed to be taken orally. NCEs are
less expensive to manufacture than extracellular large molecules, and are designed to address both
extracellular and intracellular targets.
New biological entities (“NBEs”), in particular antibody-based drugs are relatively large (molecular
weight generally greater than 50,000 daltons), tend to be highly specific and are often the only way to
block large protein-protein interactions. NBEs are generally administered by injection and can act very
rapidly and over a long period of time.
They are not easily applied to intracellular targets, but can be used to selectively modulate such events
as cytokine-receptor interactions or adhesion molecule binding. The UCB Group possesses a range of
cutting-edge technologies that facilitate the discovery and development of NCE and NBE.
NCE Technologies
The discovery of the synaptic vesicle protein SV2A, the binding site of Keppra, and the continuance of
clinical trials for further SV2A ligands, including brivaracetam, illustrate the capability and skills of the
UCB Group in advancing small molecule drug discovery to produce potential new, highly potent antiepileptic
drugs. The NCE discovery technologies of the UCB Group include, for example, computer
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