CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Alkermes, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALKS) and Acceleron Pharma, Inc. today announced that Alkermes has licensed a proprietary long-acting Fc fusion technology platform, called the Medifusion™ technology, which is designed to extend the circulating half-life of proteins and peptides. The first drug candidate being developed with this technology is a long-acting form of a TNF receptor-Fc fusion protein for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and related autoimmune diseases. The TNF receptor-Fc fusion protein is structurally similar to etanercept, commercially known as ENBREL®, which had worldwide sales of nearly $6 billion in 2008.
