Shire plc and Meritage Pharma, Inc. announced that Shire has acquired Meritage for an upfront fee of $70 million and additional contingent payments based on the achievement of development and regulatory milestones.
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With the acquisition, Shire has acquired the global rights to-and undertaken the further development of-Meritage's Phase 3-ready compound, Oral Budesonide Suspension (OBS), for the treatment of adolescents and adults with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), a rare, chronic inflammatory gastrointestinal (GI) disease.
This acquisition further enhances Shire's late-stage pipeline and builds upon the Company's rare disease and GI commercial infrastructure and expertise. Shire does not expect this acquisition to result in a change to its previously published earnings guidance for 2015.
Shire obtained the rights to acquire Meritage in connection with its acquisition of ViroPharma in 2014.
EoE is a chronic disease that is increasingly being diagnosed in children and adults, with an estimated prevalence in the U.S. of ~181,000. It is characterized by inflammation and accumulation of a specific type of immune cell, called an eosinophil, in the esophagus.
EoE patients may have persistent or relapsing symptoms related to esophageal dysfunction, which include dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) and food impaction.
OBS is a proprietary viscous oral formulation of budesonide that is designed to coat the esophagus where the drug can act locally. Budesonide is the active pharmaceutical ingredient in several products approved by the FDA, including products for the treatment of asthma, allergic rhinitis, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. ■
A low pressure wave forming along a cold front will track across the New England coast this morning, bringing a period of rain, heavy at times for much of New England, especially for Maine today.