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news.US-based pharmaceutical firm Depomed has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the US rights to the Nucynta franchise from Janssen Pharmaceuticals for $1.05bn.
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The Nucynta franchise includes Nucynta ER (tapentadol) extended release tablets that are designed to manage pain, including neuropathic pain associated with diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), and Nucynta (tapentadol), an immediate release version of tapentadol, for adults with moderate to severe acute pain.
The company said that Nucynta (tapentadol) oral solution is an approved oral form of tapentadol that has not been launched.
The deal is expected to position DepoMed as a pain and neurology-focused specialty pharmaceutical company, while Janssen called it a strategic decision designed to focus efforts on its growth priorities.
Depomed president and chief executive officer Jim Schoeneck said: "We believe that Nucynta is an ideal strategic fit for Depomed – a rare opportunity to add a proprietary, differentiated drug with a lengthy period of exclusivity that fits precisely into our therapeutic focus.
"Nucynta meets all of our criteria for product acquisition that we have laid out over the past two years. The Nucynta franchise generated US net sales of approximately $166m for the 12 months ended September 2014.
"Nucynta has composition of matter patent protection to August 2022, a potential pediatric extension into 2023, and additional patents that could extend beyond that timeframe.
"Finally, the synergies between Nucynta and our existing pain and neurology call points create a number of opportunities to grow not only the Nucynta franchise, but to enhance the growth of our current business as well."
Janssen, which licenses the commercialization rights to Nucynta franchise from Grunenthal, will retain rights to these products in several countries including Canada and Japan.
Subject to completion of financing and other customary closing conditions, the deal is expected to be closed in the second quarter of 2015.
Image: Nucynta franchise generated US net sales of about $166m for the 12 months ended September 2014. Photo: courtesy of Michelle Meiklejohn/ freedigitalphotos.net.