Paris-based Sanofi S.A. announced a definitive agreement to pay $2.9 billion for diabetes drug manufacturer Provention Bio, Inc., a U.S.-based, biopharmaceutical company focused on intercepting and preventing immune-mediated diseases including type 1 diabetes.
Provention’s TzieldTM (teplizumab-mzwv) was approved in the U.S. last year as the first and only therapy to delay the onset of Stage 3 type 1 diabetes (T1D) in adults and pediatric patients aged 8 years and older with Stage 2 T1D, according to the March 13 announcement.
“The acquisition is a strategic fit for Sanofi at the intersection of the company’s growth in immune-mediated diseases and disease-modifying therapies in areas of high unmet need, and its expertise in diabetes. Sanofi will continue to utilize its capabilities in diabetes to maximize TZIELD’s potential as a transformative therapy globally and in the U.S., aiming to delay the onset of Stage 3 type 1 diabetes for some of the approximately 65,000 people diagnosed every year. The purchase builds on an existing co-promotion agreement with Provention Bio that is already delivering TZIELD to patients in need of this immune-mediated therapy,” the announcement said.
Of the 65,000 new cases of clinical T1D diagnosed in the U.S. each year, approximately 26% are patients aged eight through 17 years. Another 35,000 are diagnosed each year in the largest five European countries.