Depomed regains rights to Gralise from Abbott; licenses Acuform to Boehringer Ingelheim

Following a period of mediation, USA-based Depomed (Nasdaq: DEPO) will regain rights to its shingles drug Gralise (gabapentin) from drug major Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT), and will receive a $40 million from the latter. The news saw Depomed’s shares rise 3.7% to $9 in after-hours trading yesterday.

The US Food and Drug Administration approved Gralise for once-daily treatment of post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) earlier this year (The Pharma Letter January 31). The shingles drug was the subject of a licensing agreement with Belgian drugmaker Solvay, which Abbott acquired in early 2010. In addition to a $48 million FDA approval milestone, the license agreement called for royalties of 14% to 20% on product sales, and sales milestones of up to $300 million. Abbott questioned its obligation to commercialize the drug in the territories specified in the Solvay agreement.

Depomed said it plans to start selling the drug by the end of 2011. It will look for a partner to help promote Gralize, a once-daily formulation of gabapentin - the active ingredient of Pfizer’s epilepsy drug Neurontin, to primary care physicians.