Allergan defuses Botox threat through buyout; Sun wins approval for novel drug

By PharmaCompass

2018-09-20

Impressions: 92 Article

Allergan is acquiring California-based Bonti, Inc., a privately held clinical-stage biotechnology startup, for US$ 195 million to defuse threat to its popular cosmetic prescription medicine — Botox. The startup was founded by former Allergan executives and focuses on creating a new botulinum neurotoxin.

Allergan will pick up global rights to Bonti’s botulinum assets that are in development for cosmetic and therapeutic applications.

Bonti had raised series C venture capital funding of around US$ 15.5 million in January this year to push its botulinum neurotoxin serotype E (BoNT/E) candidate EB-001 through the end of an ongoing phase 2 trial and start a second phase 2 study.

EB-001 is being developed in two programs: EB-001A for “facial aesthetic” applications and scar reduction following surgery for skin cancer, and EB-001T for focal muscle pain.

Bonti’s EB-001 acts in a similar way as Botox. However, it acts more quickly (within 24 hours) and its effects last for a lesser duration (about three to four weeks), compared to regular Botox, where the onset of action takes between three and seven days and the duration of its effect is for about three to four months.

Sun bags FDA approval for glaucoma treatment: India-headquartered Sun Pharmaceuticals has been working hard to shift its focus from generic to novel and specialty drugs.

Last week, its efforts bore fruit as it bagged FDA approval for a new treatment for glaucoma. The drug will be made at Sun’s once-troubled Halol plant, indicating that Sun has resolved the problems with this unit. The FDA had issued a Form 483 to this plant in 2014, followed by a warning letter in 2015 for the API plant.

Sun said the FDA has granted approval to its SPARC biotech unit for Xelprostm (latanoprost ophthalmic emulsion) 0.005 percent for the reduction of elevated pressure in the eyes of patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension. Sun in-licensed the drug from SPARC in 2015. This is a novel drug. This approval has come a month after Sun won approval of Cequa, a drug for dry eye disease.

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