Dive Brief:
- Grünenthal, an international pharmaceutical R&D company, has acquired Pittsburgh-based Thar Pharmaceuticals to expand its development portfolio of effective treatment options for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). Terms of the deal, which was announced earlier this week, were not disclosed.
- Thar's lead compound, T121, a Phase 3-ready, patented oral zoledronic acid drug product that has gotten orphan drug designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, complements Grunenthal's existing pipeline, which includes IV neridronate that is currently in phase 3 clinical development, the German-based company said.
- Grünenthal cited unmet need, noting currently there are no drug treatments for the often-disabling condition that have been approved by the FDA or the European Medicines Agency (EMA). Analgesics offer only limited relief of symptoms.
Dive Insight:
Thar aims to transform IV-only drugs into oral drugs for existing and new indications using its own technology platform. Grünenthal, a privately held company, said the acquisition of Thar supports its commercial and R&D strategy to drive innovation in pain treatment.
The German family-owned company said it intends to conduct clinical phase 3 development to demonstrate T121's efficacy and safety for treating CRPS, noting early evidence suggests that zoledronic acid may greatly reduce pain and other debilitating symptoms of the illness.
CEO Gabriel Baertschi of the Grünenthal Group, which had annual revenue of €1.2 billion ($1.27 billion) in 2015, said the company seeks to improve the lives of people with pain and orphan diseases that have limited treatment options. He said acquiring Thar "fully supports our strategy to become a leading player" in CRPS therapy.
In August, Thar announced plans for an initial public offering of $50 million. In a Nov. 16 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Thar withdrew its IPO plans because of the acquisition.
Thar Pharmaceuticals is a spinoff of Thar Technologies Inc. and employs six people, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Thar founder Lalit Chordia said he will remain with Thar Process, another spinoff of Thar Technologies, and told the newspaper he intends to focus on developing more effective non-narcotic drugs than are currently available for pain relief, including cannabinoids and meloxicam.