Vertex Pharmaceuticals to acquire ViroChem Pharma

Vertex Pharmaceuticals, a biotechnology company, has announced that it will add two polymerase inhibitors to its hepatitis C virus drug development portfolio through a definitive agreement to acquire privately-held ViroChem Pharma in a stock and cash transaction. Under the terms of the agreement, ViroChem shareholders will receive $100m in cash and 9.9 million shares of Vertex common stock.

With the addition of these compounds, Vertex will advance its strategy to pursue novel combinations of specifically targeted antiviral therapies for hepatitis C (STAT-Cs) for the treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

Following completion of the transaction, Vertex will own worldwide rights to ViroChem’s HCV drug development portfolio, including VCH-222 and VCH-759, which have demonstrated substantial reductions in plasma HCV RNA when dosed as single agents and have been well-tolerated in clinical studies to date.

Vertex expects to begin clinical evaluation of novel combination regimens of its HCV protease inhibitor telaprevir, currently in Phase III clinical development, in the second half of 2009. The transaction is subject to customary pre-closing conditions.

Vertex plans to conduct additional dose-ranging studies of VCH-222 as a single agent and in combination with pegylated interferon and ribavirin. Vertex also plans to initiate a first clinical study combining telaprevir with a ViroChem HCV polymerase inhibitor in the second half of 2009.

Joshua Boger, CEO of Vertex, said: This acquisition significantly strengthens our pipeline in hepatitis C by bringing together Vertex’s telaprevir, our HCV protease inhibitor in registration studies, with the HCV non-nucleoside polymerase inhibitors being developed by ViroChem. Through this acquisition, we’re well positioned as a leader in the development of HCV therapies.