Summary: At press time, Nycomed ASA (Oslo, Norway) and Amersham
International plc (Buckinghamshire, UK) expected to finalize their
proposed merger in October, 1997. This merger would add a
radiopharmaceutical product line to the world's leading supplier of
contrast media for x-ray.
The new company, to be called Nycome
At press time, Nycomed ASA (Oslo, Norway) and Amersham
International plc (Buckinghamshire, UK) expected to finalize their
proposed merger in October, 1997. This merger would add a
radiopharmaceutical product line to the world's leading supplier of
contrast media for x-ray.
The new company, to be called Nycomed Amersham plc, will locate
its corporate and worldwide headquarters in Buckinghamshire, United
Kingdom, with its pharmaceuticals and European headquarters in
Oslo, Norway. The U.S. base of Nycomed Amersham will be located at
Nycomed Inc.'s current headquarters in Princeton, New Jersey.
Covering four modalities
"The merged group will be uniquely placed as the only provider
of all four forms of diagnostic imaging to an established global
market franchise," said Johan Fredrik Odfjell, chairman of Nycomed
and chairman-designate of Nycomed Amersham. According to Nycomed,
the new combined company will be "No. 1 in x-ray, No. 1 in nuclear
medicine, No. 2 and growing in MRI [magnetic resonance imaging],
and it will be excellently positioned to compete in the
up-and-coming growth area, ultrasound." Nycomed has an ultrasound
contrast medium in late-stage clinical development.
The merger combines "Nycomed's proven skills in chemistry with
Amersham's leading reputation in biology" to provide stronger
research capabilities, said Richard Lapthorne, Amersham's current
chairman. Lapthorne is expected to be named deputy chairman of
Nycomed Amersham.
The merger of Amersham's Life Sciences Division with Pharmacia
Biotech (Uppsala, Sweden), part of the Pharmacia & Upjohn
group, created the world's largest research-
based biotechnology supplier. Life sciences will be the
second-largest business area for Nycomed Amersham, with the
genomics market expected to grow substantially over the next 10
years. Last year's merger of Amersham with Nihon Medi-Physics will
strengthen Nycomed Amersham's presence in Japan.
Ultrasound contrast: top priority
With 11 imaging products in development, Nycomed's top priority
is a third-generation contrast agent for ultrasound. Phase II
cardiac clinical trials have been completed for this agent; liver
imaging trials are now under way.
In its collaboration with Diatide (Londonderry, NH), Nycomed
plans in the future to provide nuclear medicine imaging agents for
cancer, deep-vein thrombosis, and infectious diseases.
The Board of Directors of Nycomed Amersham will comprise 14
members, half from Nycomed and half from Amersham. Nycomed Amersham
will follow the Norwegian practice of allowing Nycomed and Amersham
each to nominate one employee representative to the Board.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
has classified the new drug application (NDA) for AcuTectTM
(technetium-99m apticide) as a "priority drug," meaning that the
agency will attempt to complete its review within 6 months,
reported Diatide, Inc. (Londonderry, NH), the biopharmaceutical
company that develops radiolabeled peptide-based imaging agents for
nuclear medicine. Under the standard FDA review process, most new
drugs take approximately 12 months in review. The company submitted
its NDA for technetium-99m apticide, formerly known as P280, in
August 1997.
According to Diatide, the FDA reserves priority status for drugs
that "would be a significant improvement in the safety or
effectiveness of the treatment, diagnosis, or prevention of a
serious or life-threatening disease" compared with available
therapies.
Binds to platelets, detects/localizes deep-vein
thrombosis
Designed to detect and localize acute venous thrombosis,
technetium-99m apticide binds to receptors on platelets. Based on
phase III clinical trial data, apticide appears to provide more
accurate results than ultrasound for diagnosing acute deep-vein
thrombosis in patients with recurrent symptoms, said a Diatide
representative. The company also believes that nuclear medicine
imaging with technetium-99m apticide will be safer than venography
and will provide comparable or better accuracy.
Diatide was issued a U.S. patent in July 1997 for its
radiolabeled thrombus imaging compounds. The company now holds 9
U.S. patents and 20 foreign patents.
Partnership with Nycomed
AcuTect is licensed to Nycomed ASA for regulatory approval and
distribution in Europe, South Africa, and some regions of the
Middle East. In the United States, Nycomed and Diatide have an
agreement for joint marketing of technetium-99m apticide. Diatide
has five other products, for seven indications, all currently in
phase II and III clinical trials.