AstraZeneca returned to CSPC Pharmaceutical with a new kidney disease drug discovery collaboration worth up to $1.7 billion, following a prior package with the Chinese partner earlier this year. AstraZeneca said it will pay $30 million upfront and jointly discover and develop two kidney candidates. The renewed partnership underscores AstraZeneca’s continued effort to feed its pipeline through external innovation channels while focusing on renal areas where development programs have increasingly gained attention from global pharma.