Abbott buys heart drug from Aventis for $300 million

pharmafile | June 10, 2004 | News story | |   

Chicago-based Abbott Laboratories has bought the marketing and manufacturing rights for cardiovascular drug trandolapril from Aventis, in a deal worth $300 million.

As Aventis' US partner Abbott already owns the US marketing rights to trandolapril – the deal will see it take over the remaining marketing (except Japan) and manufacturing rights for trandolapril and combination trandolapril/verapamil.

Trandolapril is an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, a group of drugs used in the treatment of high blood pressure and heart failure; in combination with verapamil it is a calcium channel blocker or antagonist, used to reduce the strength of heart-muscle contractions.

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The deal will see Aventis receive upfront and milestone payments totalling $300 million, as well as royalties on future sales; it will be earnings-enhancing for Abbott in 2005.  

"We believe that trandolapril and the trandolapril/verapamil combination have the potential to be significant global brands and strong contributors to Abbott's pharmaceutical portfolio," said Abbott president Jeffrey Leiden.

Aventis will continue manufacturing trandolapril for Abbott during the transition period, until Abbott adopts the necessary technology to manufacture the drug itself.

Franco-German pharmaceuticals group Aventis recently agreed a $51 billion takeover bid from Sanofi-Synthelabo, but the latter said the Abbott deal was "business as usual" and would not affect the proposed 30 June merger.  

 

 

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