DUBLIN, Ireland – Two recent but wholly contrasting investments illustrated how the Irish biopharmaceutical sector is facing up to the headwinds that beset the global industry and point the way to how it may develop in the future.
Biotie Therapies Oyj took another step along its growth-by-acquisition pathway by agreeing to take over Newron Pharmaceuticals SpA in a stock-based deal valued at €37.4 million (US$50.7 million) initially, with another possible €7.2 million in share-based milestones on the table.
Next month, Karo Bio AB will begin recruitment in a pivotal Phase III trial of eprotirome in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HeFH), having received a green light from regulatory authorities in Europe. (BioWorld International)
AM-Pharma BV banked €29.2 million (US$39.8 million) in a Series D round, which, to its knowledge, is the biggest ever venture capital financing in Dutch biotechnology. The company will use the proceeds to effect a switch from a bovine to a recombinant form of alkaline phosphatase, which is in development for treatment of acute kidney injury. (BioWorld International)
