ACUR: dipped down to 91 cents Friday, really like this deal with Bayer longterm.
Acura Pharmaceuticals Partners
Its Methamphetamine Resistant Impede® Technology
Palatine, IL (June 16, 2015) – Acura Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ACUR), today announced that Acura has entered into a License and Development Agreement with Bayer Healthcare LLC to provide an exclusive worldwide license to Acura’s IMPEDE technology for use in an undisclosed methamphetamine-resistant pseudoephedrine-containing product and to jointly develop such product utilizing the IMPEDE technology for the U.S. market. Bayer has the right to negotiate for a worldwide license to the IMPEDE technology for additional products.
In spite of successful industry-wide efforts to curb the diversion of pseudoephedrine containing cold and allergy products to the illegal production of methamphetamine, the issue continues to affect many communities. Methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug and its production can be highly flammable resulting in substantial costs for clean-up, hospitalization and treatment of addiction. Legitimate pseudoephedrine consumers have been faced with an increasing array of purchase requirements, including monthly purchase limitations and, in some cases, requiring a physician’s prescription, in an effort to reduce the impact of pseudoephedrine diversion.
Acura’s IMPEDE methamphetamine-resistant technology is available in the US in its NEXAFED® immediate-release products. IMPEDE technology has demonstrated significantly reduced yields of methamphetamine compared to traditional formulations in laboratory tests and has been associated with a reduction in methamphetamine laboratories in local markets of up to 90%.
Bob Jones, Acura’s President and CEO commented, “We’re excited to have a partner that brings highly valued development expertise and is committed to addressing the methamphetamine problem.”
About Acura Pharmaceuticals
Acura Pharmaceuticals is a specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in the research, development and commercialization of product candidates intended to address medication abuse and misuse, utilizing its proprietary LIMITX™, AVERSION® and IMPEDE® Technologies. LIMITX contains ingredients that are intended to reduce or limit the rate or extent of opioid release when multiple tablets are ingested. AVERSION contains polymers that cause the drug to gel when dissolved; it also contains compounds that irritate the nasal passages if the product is snorted. IMPEDE is designed to disrupt the processing of pseudoephedrine from tablets into methamphetamine.
