Supernus to acquire Biscayne Neurotherapeutics and its epilepsy candidate

CNS drug developer Supernus Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: SUPN) has entered into a merger agreement to acquire Biscayne Neurotherapeutics, a privately-held company developing a novel treatment for epilepsy, in a deal that could exceed $180 million.

Supernus will obtain worldwide rights (excluding certain markets in Asia where rights have been out-licensed) to Biscayne’s product candidate that is in Phase I clinical development and that has received an Orphan Drug designation from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of Dravet Syndrome, a severe form of childhood epilepsy.

The epilepsy candidate BIS-001ER, which Supernus will rename SPN-817, uses a novel synthetic form of huperzine A. Supernus will also obtain rights to all the product candidate’s underlying and related intellectual property (IP).