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Sucampo Looks To Add Heft With Vtesse Acquisition

 
• By Joseph Haas

In search of a new direction since shelving cobiprostone last summer, Sucampo acquires Cydan-backed startup and Niemann-Pick disease candidate VTS-270, now in a pivotal Phase IIb/III study.

Troubled Sucampo Pharmaceuticals Inc. is placing a $200m wager on the potential of bringing the first drug therapy for the rare disorder Niemann-Pick Disease Type C1 (NPC-1) to market, announcing a cash-and-stock buyout of privately held Vtesse Inc. and its pivotal-stage VTS-270 on April 3.

Sucampo has been struggling since it decided to shelve its lead pipeline candidate, cobiprostone, last July following clinical disappointments in oral mucositis and gastroesophageal reflux disease, and called the deal "an excellent strategic fit." A fully enrolled, global Phase IIb/III study of VTS-270 – a mixture of 2-hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrins (HPβCD) – is expected to report out by mid-2018

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