THOUSAND OAKS : Amgen Gets Rights to ‘Fat Gene’ Products

A Thousand Oaks-based biotechnology firm Tuesday was awarded the exclusive rights to develop products based upon the so-called “fat gene,” which researchers discovered last year.

Amgen Inc. officials signed an agreement to pay New York’s Rockefeller University $20 million for access to gene. The agreement could be worth tens of millions more if marketable drugs are developed and certain, unspecified regulatory milestones are reached, officials said.

Rockefeller University scientists announced in December that they had identified and cloned a gene responsible for obesity, sending a field of researchers racing to develop drugs to combat obesity.

Amgen spokesman David Kaye said it was too early to tell if the agreement will lead to more jobs in the area or expansion of the company, which employs 3,300 people worldwide and 2,800 locally.

“All we have right now is the lock,” Kaye said. “We still have to find the key.”

Industry analysts said developing a drug, getting government approval and bringing it to market will take at least five years.

“And if I were to make an estimate, I’d say it will take 10 years,” said Jim McCamant, editor of the twice-monthly Medical Technology Stock Letter. Further, McCamant said, experts believe obesity to be a complex problem caused by a combination of factors, including several different genes.

Still, Amgen officials said the agreement is a significant step in finding a treatment for obesity.

“It will certainly be a high-priority item,” Kaye said.

Amgen reported a profit of $320 million on sales of $1.65 billion last year.