A biopharmaceutical firm co-founded by a former Durham University lecturer has been acquired by drugs giant Pfizer in a £412m ($525m) deal.
ReViral, which has run a research facility at Sedgefield's NETPark since 2016, will strengthen Pfizer's infectious diseases capabilities and will benefit from the multi-national's commercialisation expertise.
The deal includes an upfront payment as well as amounts at significant milestones in ReViral's work to develop antiviral therapeutics that targets a common disease affecting the lungs and breathing passages.
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ReViral focuses on discovering, developing, and commercialising treatments for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) which can lead to severe and life-threatening situations in some high-risk groups such as young infants, people with immunocompromised conditions and elderly people.
The disease is estimated to cause infections in about 64m people, resulting in about 160,000 deaths, globally every year. ReViral says it has a number of "promising" therapeutic products in development, including sisunatovir, an orally administered inhibitor designed to block fusion of the RSV virus to the host cell which has been granted Fast Track designation by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
In June last year the firm announced a successful phase of a study into the use of sisunatovir for treatment of RSV infection in hospitalised infants.
Albert Bourla, chairman and chief executive officer of Pfizer, said: “At Pfizer, we have a strong heritage in, and commitment to, fighting infectious diseases, most recently evidenced by our delivery of the first authorized vaccine and oral therapy to combat Covid-19.
“We’re continuing to grow our pipeline – through our own research-and-development efforts, such as our investigational RSV vaccine programs, as well as strategic investments in companies like ReViral – with a focus on end-to-end capabilities to help protect patients from severe illness, hospitalization, and death.”
Annaliesa Anderson, senior vice president and chief scientific officer for bacterial vaccines and hospital at Pfizer, said: “Currently, treatment options for RSV are extremely limited and focus primarily on supportive care.
“The proposed acquisition of ReViral’s pipeline of therapeutic candidates is complementary to our efforts to advance the first vaccine candidate to help protect against this harmful disease. Combining the capabilities and expertise of our organizations will enable us to further the clinical development of a potential therapy for those with RSV disease.”
Alex C. Sapir, CEO, ReViral, added: “Since the foundation of the company a decade ago by Dr Ken Powell and Dr Stuart Cockerill, ReViral’s mission has always been to develop world-class therapies for RSV patients.
“This acquisition represents a validation of the deep antiviral experience of the ReViral team and our unwavering commitment to deliver therapies for patients in need. Pfizer is an optimal partner given their commitment to RSV through their ongoing RSV vaccine program, coupled with their world-class clinical, regulatory, manufacturing and commercial capabilities.
"We look forward to working with our colleagues at Pfizer to bring these therapies to patients as quickly as possible.”
