Ireland-based pharmaceutical company Shire on Wednesday gained on news it had acquired Lotus Tissue Repair.
Shire advanced 1.78% to 1,998.00p on Tuesday morning following its announcement about purchasing the US-based company for an undisclosed sum.
Lotus is focused on developing the first treatment for dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB), a rare genetic disorder that causes extremely fragile skin and recurrent blister formation.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
The group's protein replacement therapy is in late pre-clinical development for the treatment of DEB.
Philip Vickers, Head of Research and Development at Shire Human Genetic Therapies, said the protein replacement therapy could potentially provide first-in-class disease-modifying treatment for children with the disorder.
Lotus Tissue Repair was founded in 2011 when it closed on a $26m in Series A financing round from venture capital firm Third Rock Investors.
The acquisition marks Shire's latest effort to strengthen its rare disease offering including the treatment of EB.
Shire is also working on ABH001, a regenerative medicine product under investigation as a skin substitute therapy for nonhealing wounds in EB patients.
"The acquisition actually has no negative consequences on ABH001. That's moving ahead at full speed. It's not being slowed down. We very clearly see these as being complementary in a number of ways," Vickers told GEN.
RD
-
HMRC slaps pensioners with record high surprise tax bills - do you owe the taxman money?More than a million people face surprise tax bills by HMRC, including thousands of pensioners, as triple lock pushes more retirees into taxable income brackets
-
Chase to launch its first ever credit card next monthChase bank has been piloting its first-ever credit card to select employees and customers since November, but will roll it out to all customers from June, MoneyWeek can reveal. While the bank has become popular for current and savings accounts, will its credit offering be just as favoured?
