Axonyx and the privately-held TorreyPines Therapeutics have agreed to merge into a single company that will be devoted to finding new therapies for diseases of the central nervous system. The new company will be called TorreyPines Therapeutics, with Axonyx shareholders holding 58 percent of the stock in the new concern. Axonyx currently has three compounds in development for Alzheimer's disease. TorreyPines has been in the hunt for new therapies for migraine, chronic pain--including neuropathic pain--and Alzheimer's disease. TorreyPines' lead product candidate for chronic pain, tezampanel, is expected to enter into a Phase IIb clinical trial for the treatment of migraine.
"This merger will create a premier biopharmaceutical company with development and discovery capabilities across the CNS spectrum," said Neil Kurtz, M.D., president and CEO of TorreyPines.
- here's the release on the merger
PLUS: Analysts say yesterday's NeuTec acquisition shows that smaller biotech companies are becoming tempting takeover targets for pharma companies that are being forced to pay ever-higher licensing fees. Report