Pfizer to buy Excaliard for undisclosed sum
Gains access to antisense oligonucleotide currently in Phase II trials
Pfizer has agreed to buy privately held US biopharmaceutical company Excaliard Pharmaceuticals for an undisclosed sum, gaining access to the Carlsbad, CA-based firm’s experimental skin scarring drug.
Pfizer, which expects the deal to close before the end of the year, said Excaliard would receive an upfront payment and contingent payments if certain milestones were achieved.
Excaliard’s lead product, EXC 001, co-developed with Isis Pharmaceuticals, is an antisense oligonucleotide in Phase II trials that interrupts the process of skin scarring by inhibiting expression of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF). CTGF can be over expressed in damaged skin or tissue following surgery or traumatic injury and lead to disfiguring skin scarring.
Pfizer plans to continue development of EXC 001. The pharmaceutical firm says currently there are no US FDA-approved products to reduce scar severity.
Isis Pharmaceuticals said it would receive up to US$14m from Pfizer for its equity ownership of Excaliard. In addition, the firm, also based in Carlsbad, will continue to be eligible for milestone and royalty payments under its licensing agreement with Excaliard for EXC 001.
‘The acquisition of Excaliard is part of our corporate research and development strategy to complement our internal project pipeline with innovative and differentiated drugs from biotech partners,’ said Mikael Dolsten, president, Worldwide Research and Development at Pfizer.
Gordon Foulkes, Excaliard’s chief executive, said: ‘We are all excited about Pfizer becoming the company to move our drug forward. We began Excaliard just four years ago with closing the Series A financing. Since that time, using a virtual organisation and maximum outsourcing, we were able to move from lead generation to the completion of three Phase II trials. The whole team has just done a fantastic job.’
Isis and Excaliard entered into a collaboration in 2007 to discover and develop antisense drugs for the local treatment of fibrotic diseases, including scarring.