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Horizon acquires rare eye disease therapy

May 8, 2017 9:21 PM UTC

Horizon Pharma plc (NASDAQ:HZNP) is acquiring single-asset company River Vision Development Corp. (New York, N.Y.), giving it Graves' eye disease candidate teprotumumab (RV001). River Vision is to receive $145 million up front and is eligible for milestones and earn-out payments. Horizon declined to discuss more specific financial terms.

A paper published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine showed teprotumumab met the primary endpoint in a Phase II trial to treat Graves' eye disease, also known as thyroid eye disease. Next half, Horizon plans to begin a Phase III trial of the candidate, which is a human mAb targeting the insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) receptor (IGF1R). It hopes to submit a BLA in 2H19 for teprotumumab, which has breakthrough therapy and Orphan Drug designations from FDA...