Pfizer to Acquire Excaliard Pharmaceuticals

Pfizer and Excaliard Pharmaceuticals, Inc. have entered into a definitive agreement under which Pfizer will acquire Excaliard, a privately owned biopharmaceutical company focused on developing drugs for the treatment of skin fibrosis. Excaliard will receive an upfront payment and related milestone payments. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of the year. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Excaliard’s lead product, EXC 001, is an antisense oligonucleotide currently in Phase II development and has the potential to reduce scar severity by inhibiting connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), which can be over expressed in damaged skin or tissue following surgery or traumatic injury. Pfizer plans to continue development of EXC 001 for excessive skin scarring, for which there are currently no FDA-approved products.

Jose-Carlos Gutierrez-Ramos, senior vice president, Biotherapeutics, Worldwide R&D, Pfizer, said, “The science behind Excaliard’s lead compound aligns well with our R&D focus on new treatments for fibrosis and tissue remodeling. We view EXC 001 as being well positioned to potentially become a novel, transformative therapy in a space with limited available treatment options.”

Gordon Foulkes, Excaliard’s chief executive officer, said, “We are all excited about Pfizer becoming the company to move our drug forward. We began Excaliard just four years ago with closing the Series A financing. Since that time, using a virtual organization and maximum outsourcing, we were able to move from lead generation to the completion of three Phase II trials. The whole team has just done a fantastic job.”