Amarin acquires Parkinson’s drug candidate

The novel oral formulation provides rapid absorption of apomorphine directly into the bloodstream after sublingual (under the tongue) administration. This novel formulation would offer patients an improved alternative to the currently available injectable formulation of apomorphine.

Amarin in-licensed the rights to the new formulation from Dr Anthony Clarke, Amarin’s vice president of clinical development, who invented this novel formulation and filed the related patent prior to joining Amarin.

The transaction comprises a small upfront payment, success milestones on the advancement of the development program to regulatory approval and royalties upon commercialization. More specific terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“This oral formulation of apomorphine potentially represents an important breakthrough for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease patients experiencing ‘off’ episodes,” said Rick Stewart, CEO of Amarin. “Current treatment with apomorphine is by frequent injection, often several times per day, and can be painful. This oral alternative potentially offers significant advantages for these severely ill patients.”

The novel formulation has already completed a proof of concept study which demonstrated oral bioavailability of apomorphine in human volunteers, while also being well tolerated. Amarin will conduct additional formulation development work and plans to commence final-stage clinical trials next year.