Japan's Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma announced it will acquire NeuroDerm for $1.1 billion in cash in an effort to grow its business in the United States. The drugmaker said it was interested in Neuroderm's Parkinson's disease drug, ND0612, that is in Phase III clinical trials in the United States and Europe, which is expected to launch in 2019.
As a first step in expanding its franchise into the U.S., Mitsubishi will be launching Radicava, an FDA-approved treatment option for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in August 2017. In addition, the acquisition of ND0612 is intended to enable the company to "achieve its U.S. sales target of 80 billion yen" ($722 million) by its 2020 financial year.
Neuroderm's Nasdaq-listed shares were up 15.2 percent at $38.25 in pre-market trade.
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