Novartis to Buy Drug Firm

Daniel Vasella, the chairman and CEO of Novartis, said clinical trials show Mycograb can "significantly lower the mortality of patients with severe fungal infections."

The company said Mycograb will compete in a portion of the antifungal arena that yielded $1.7 billion in sales last year for the top seven markets. "The number of patients, estimated at more than 1.2 million worldwide annually, continues to rise as the population ages, and also due to the growing number of surgeries, use of chemotherapy and an increase in transplants," Novartis said. The company will conduct additional clinical trials to expand the drug's use for other diseases.

Aurograb would compete in a "rapidly growing segment of the antibiotics market," with $1.5 billion in sales for the top seven countries, Novartis said. Aurograb is now being tested in 35 medical centers in six European countries. The clinical trial is comparing Aurograb and vancomycin to vancomycin alone in the treatment of infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus that resist penicillin-like drugs. Vancomycin is considered the antibiotic of last resort.

Novartis said it also plans to conduct clinical trials with other drugs, such as the antibiotic Cubicin, as an add-on therapy. "The acquisition of NeuTec will expand our infectious disease portfolio to dramatically strengthen our position in hospital infections," said Thomas Ebeling, CEO of Novartis's prescription drug division.

Earlier this year, Novartis acquired Chiron, which gave it rights to Europe and other foreign markets for Cubicin, a treatment for complicated skin and soft-tissue infections. Cubicin is made by Cubist Pharmaceuticals (CBST), which recently won FDA approval for expanding its use to treating often-deadly heart infections.

Novartis expects to close the NeuTec purchase during the second half of the year.

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