MDCO to acquire Incline, partners with BMS

The Medicines Co. (NASDAQ:MDCO) announced a pair of deals on Wednesday, including a deal to acquire Incline Therapeutics Inc. (Redwood City, Calif.) for $185 million up front plus up to $205 million in milestones. The Medicines Co. will gain exclusive, worldwide rights to Ionsys fentanyl, which Incline licensed from the Alza Corp. subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) in 2010. The transdermal fentanyl patch was marketed in the EU for short-term management of acute post-operative pain but recalled in 2008 after J&J identified a defect in the production system. Ionsys was approved but never launched in the U.S. When Incline licensed Ionsys, it said the product would need to be approved again by regulatory authorities before it could be marketed. The Medicines Co. said on a conference call to discuss the deal that Incline fixed the defect. The company plans to submit an NDA to FDA for Ionsys in 2H13; a regulatory filing in Europe is slated for 2014. The boards of both companies unanimously approved the deal, which is expected to close next quarter. BofA Merrill Lynch advised The Medicines Co. Leerink advised Incline.

In connection with the deal, Cadence Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:CADX) said it will terminate its exclusive option to acquire Incline in exchange for about $13 million, plus about $1.5 million for its Incline stake and an undisclosed portion of the milestones. Cadence acquired the option to buy Incline for up to $228 million under a 2010 deal, but declined to exercise the option last year to focus on the U.S. launch of pain and fever drug Ofirmev IV acetaminophen. Cadence was up $0.24 to $4.50 on Wednesday. ...