Landipirdine

January 19, 2016 By Mark Terry , BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff Ardley, N.Y.-based Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that it plans to acquire Turku, Finland-based Biotie Therapies Corp. for approximately $363 million. Acorda focuses on central nervous system disorders, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), spasticity related to MS, spinal cord injury (SCI), brain trauma and stroke, and neuropathic pain. The acquisition of Biotie will strengthen Acorda ’s position with the worldwide rights to tozadenant, a drug currently in Phase III clinical trials for Parkinson’s disease (PD). In addition, Acorda will pick up global rights to SYN120, an oral, 5-HT6/5-HT2A dual receptor antagonist for Parkinson’s-related dementia. SYN120 is currently in Phase II trials with support from the Michael J. Fox Foundation . Other assets associated with Biotie are BTT1023, a fully human monoclonal antibody developed for primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), a chronic liver disease, which is currently in Phase II trials, and double-digit royalties from sales of Selincro. This compound is approved in Europe for the treatment of reduction in alcohol consumption. It is marked by H. Lundbeck A/S across Europe. “Our acquisition of Biotie positions Acorda as a leader in Parkinson’s disease therapeutic development, with three clinical-stage compounds that have the potential to improve the lives of people with Parkinson’s,” said Ron Cohen , Acorda ’s president and chief executive officer, in a statement. Last week, at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference held in San Francisco, Acorda released its 2016 financial guidance and some of its 2015 sales figures. The company reported fourth-quarter net sales of $121 million for Ampyria (dalfampridine). The unaudited 2015 full-year net sales were $436 million, an increase of 19 percent from 2014. Ampyra is used to treat MS. “We expect a series of important clinical milestones in 2016 for all three of our late-stage programs,” Cohen said in a statement. “We are aiming to complete pivotal trials for CVT-301 in Parkinson’s disease and PLUMIAZ in seizure clusters this year; if successful, we plan to Drug Applications for both in 2017. We project that these two therapies could generate combined peak sales of over $700 million. We also expect to perform an interim analysis in our Phase III trial of dalfampridine for post-stroke walking deficits. This analysis, combined with results from our development efforts on a once-daily formulation of dalfampridine, will establish the next steps for the program.” Acorda Therapeutics has been fairly volatile this last year, although it’s recently been on an upswing. Shares traded on Jan. 23, 2015 for $43.76, dropped to $25.78 on Sept. 29, 2015, and rose to $43.03 on Dec. 30, 2015. Shares are currently trading for $39.90. Biotie ’s headquarters are in Turku, Finland, with clinical operations in South San Francisco, Calif. Once the acquisition is completed, Acorda indicates it plans to keep the Bay Area location and keep Biotie staff at that site. It has not decided yet what to do with the Turku facility in the short term. “We have carefully assessed the terms and conditions of the offer and believe that it is an attractive offer to shareholders that recognizes the strategic value of Biotie ,” said William Burns , Biotie ’s chairman of the board, in a statement. “With the shared mission to improve the lives of patients with neurological diseases, this transaction will allow Acorda and Biotie to bring together their expertise and resources in order to fully maximize the potential of tozadenant, an A2a receptor antagonist in Phase III for Parkinson’s disease, and SYN120 a dual 5-HT6/5-HT2A receptor antagonist in Phase II for cognitive and psychotic disorders, and to bring new medicines to patients.” The deal is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2016.