Paratek Earns Actavis Milestone

Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will receive a $4 million milestone payment from Actavis under the companies’ sarecycline (WC3035) development collaboration. Actavis has initiated Phase III trials of sarecycline in moderate to severe acne. Paratek is eligible for additional regulatory and commercialization milestones, including NDA acceptance, approval, and royalties on sales.
 
The companies entered the exclusive collaboration for sarecycline in July 2007. Paratek designed and developed sarecycline, which is a tetracycline-derived compound that, based on preclinical studies, demonstrates a narrow spectrum of antibacterial activity against relevant skin bacterial pathogens, offering a favorable tolerability profile compared to oral tetracycline antibiotics that are the current standard of care. Paratek retains the rights to develop and commercialize sarecycline in all territories outside the U.S.
 
“The commencement of the Phase III trials by our collaboration partner Actavis is a significant step forward towards the potential commercialization in the U.S. of our proprietary compound sarecycline. We believe that sarecycline has the potential to be an important new once-daily oral medication for the treatment of moderate to severe acne,” said Evan Loh president and chief medical officer Paratek.