LEO snags Peplin, lesion therapy in $287M buyout

Looking to boost its pipeline for dermatology products, Denmark's LEO Pharma has agreed to buy out Peplin for $287.5 million. The acquisition values Peplin at $16.99 a share and LEO will also extend a loan to the company to fund operations until the deal closes.

The buyout marks the end of a series of twists and turns for Peplin, which has a lead therapy in development for precancerous skin lesions. MPM Capital bought the developer two years ago, when it was based in Australia. MPM then tried, and failed, to pull off an IPO last summer as the market slid into deep freeze. New managers were brought in and $24 million in fresh capital was raised to fund the company.

Peplin has plans to file an NDA for PEP-005, a late-stage gel developed from an Australian weed, in the middle of next year. LEO CEO Gitte Aabo said the agreement to acquire Peplin "fits extremely well with our ambition of staying in the global lead within dermatology."

- here's the press release
- read the story from the San Francisco Business Times