Jazz Pharmaceuticals agrees to acquire Celator for $1.5bn

Ireland-based Jazz will pay $30.25 per share in cash for Celator and get access to Vyxeos, an investigational product in development to treat acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

The transaction is anticipated to be completed in the third quarter of this year.

Vyxeos, which is based on the Celator CombiPlex platform, is a nano-scale liposomal formulation of cytarabine:daunorubicin.

Treatment with Vyxeos helped older high-risk patients with AML live longer than those who received the standard of care regimen in a phase 3 clinical trial.

The US Food and Drug Administration and the European Commission granted orphan drug designation for Vyxeos for the treatment of AML.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals chairman and CEO Bruce Cozadd said: "Vyxeos will further diversify our product portfolio and is complementary to our clinical and commercial expertise in hematology/oncology.

"As Celator is currently preparing a regulatory submission in the U.S. for Vyxeos, this acquisition would add a new orphan product with the potential for short- and long-term revenue generation and expansion of our international commercial platform."

Celator has also carried out clinical development on CPX-1, a nano-scale liposomal formulation of irinotecan:floxuridine studied in colorectal cancer.

The company has recently advanced its CombiPlex platform and expanded its application to include molecularly targeted therapies.

Jazz has a portfolio of products and product candidates, with a focus in the areas of sleep and hematology/oncology.

Image: Jazz Pharmaceuticals agrees to acquire Celator Pharmaceuticals.Photo: courtesy of stockimages/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.