BioMarin acquires Huxley Pharmaceuticals

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc has acquired Huxley Pharmaceuticals, Inc (Huxley), which has rights to a proprietary form of 3,4-diaminopyridine (3,4-DAP), amifampridine phosphate, for the rare autoimmune disease Lambert Eaton Myasthenic Syndrome (LEMS). Last week, the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicines Evaluations Agency adopted a positive opinion recommending approval of amifampridine phosphate for LEMS. If approved by the European Commission, amifampridine phosphate will be the first approved treatment for LEMS, thereby conferring orphan drug protection and providing ten years of market exclusivity in Europe. Huxley licensed the rights to 3,4-DAP from EUSA Pharma, which was developing the product after acquiring the rights from the original developer, Assistance Publique Hopitaux de Paris (AP-HP).