After suffering development setbacks with regard to two of its late-stage drug candidates, AstraZeneca has signed separate deals with two Asian pharmaceutical companies to help bolster its sparse pipeline. In a deal potentially worth more than US$140 M, AstraZeneca has licensed rights from Hutchison MediPharma to co-develop and commercialise volitinib, a preclinical c-Met receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor being developed for cancer. The company has also obtained an option to acquire the type 2 diabetes assets of Astellas Pharma’s Prosidion subsidiary, Phase II PSN821 and preclinical-stage PSN842.