BRIEF—Alcohol consumption reducing drug Selincro launched in Japan

Japan’s Otsuka Pharmaceutical has launched Selincro nalmefene hydrochloride) 10mg tablets, a therapeutic drug treatment to reduce alcohol consumption in alcohol-dependent patients in Japan.

Selincro, the first dual-acting opioid system modulator in Japan, acts on the brain's motivational system, which is dysregulated in patients with alcohol dependence.

In 2013 Otsuka formed an agreement with Danish CNS specialist Lundbeck on the development and commercialization of Selincro in Japan, with the deal including an upfront payment of around $60 million to Lundbeck.

Lundbeck itself acquired rights to nalmefene from Finland-based biotech firm Biotie Therapies.