MSD's US $1.25 billion acquisition of African Pharma

Source: Bio Valley 2016-06-13 US pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co recently announced a US $1.25 billion acquisition of African pharma At present, the two sides have reached a final agreement The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of this year African Pharma is a privately held biopharmaceutical company that develops therapeutic candidates targeting P2X3 receptors for the treatment of common and poorly managed neurogenic diseases Af-219, the company's leading compound, is a selective, non anesthetic, oral administration of P2X3 antagonist At present, it is in a phase IIB clinical treatment for intractable cough, which is also in a phase IIa clinical treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) cough P2X3 receptors are believed to play a key role in sensitization of specific sensory nerves, which are activated by ATP under pathological conditions The compound developed by African Pharma aims to selectively block the ATP activation of P2X3 channel, potentially reducing a series of sensory signs and symptoms According to MSD, African Pharma has initiated the clinical development of innovative drugs targeting P2X3 receptor selectively, which is an exciting research field MSD is looking forward to promoting these innovative candidate drugs to meet the significant unmet medical needs of chronic cough population According to the agreement, MSD will pay $500 million in cash through its subsidiaries to acquire all outstanding shares of African pharma In addition, African Pharma shareholders will be eligible for a total of $750 million in milestone payments related to clinical development and commercialization of multiple indications and multiple preferred drugs, including af-219 The incidence rate of chronic cough (cough and cough for more than 8 weeks) in the United States is about 10% in adult population There is no definite internal cause for up to 40% of the patients These patients do not alleviate the conventional symptomatic treatment At present, there are no approved drugs for chronic cough