Roche said Dec. 23 it bought the exclusive rights to commercialize Sarepta's Duchenne muscular dystrophy gene therapy drug outside the U.S. for $750 million.
Under the terms of the deal, Roche will pay Sarepta $750 million in cash up front, as well as $400 million in equity. Sarepta could receive up to $1.7 billion in regulatory and sales milestones plus royalties on net sales.
The drug, SRP-9001, is designed to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a rare genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle deterioration and weakness. People typically notice the first symptoms of it in infants between the ages of 3 and 5, and symptoms worsen over time.
SRP-9001 delivers the microdystrophin-encoding gene directly to muscle tissue for the targeted production of the microdystrophin protein.
Under the deal, Sarapeta will still be responsible for the clinical development and manufacturing of the drug, and will share global development costs equally with Roche.
Doug Ingram, president and CEO of Sarepta, said the partnership between the two drugmakers will shorten time patients outside the U.S. have to wait to receive the drug and expand the scope of territories where the drug will be available.
The drugmakers expect the deal to close in the first quarter of 2020.
Read the full news release here.
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