BioMarin to Acquire Global Rights to the Drug Kuvan

By Lisa Beilfuss 

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. said Thursday that it has bought the global rights from Merck & Co. to its oral drug to treat genetic disorder Phenylketonuria, or PKU, a move to grow its international market for the medicine.

The San Rafael, Calif.-based company will pay EUR340 million ($379 million) to Merck Serono, the biopharmaceutical division of Merck, upfront for the rights to Kuvan. In addition, BioMarin may pay an additional EUR60 million in milestone payments if combined sales of the drug reach certain, undisclosed sales thresholds and EUR125 million in regulatory milestones.

The two companies co-developed the drug, which is the first oral treatment for hyperphenylalaninemia, or HPA, deficiency. In patients with PKU, there is a defect in the enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase that converts the essential amino acid phenylalanine to tyrosine thyroxine. The deficiency results in decreased levels of tyrosine and an accumulation of phenylalanine in blood and tissues, which, untreated, leads to severe brain damage, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Kuvan reduces the concentration of phenylalanine in a PKU patient's blood, and it allows patients to relax dietary restrictions necessary to manage the condition.

Kuvan is approved in 51 countries, including the U.S.

Under the companies' previous agreement, Merck Serono, the biopharmaceutical division of Merck, had exclusive rights to market Kuvan outside of the U.S., Canada and Japan.

Write to Lisa Beilfuss at [e-mail]

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 01, 2015 07:25 ET (11:25 GMT)

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