Cerimon Pharmaceuticals Inc, of San Francisco, California, announced that it has acquired the exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize Novartis Pharmaceutical's Simulect® (basiliximab) for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Simulect is a monoclonal antibody that selectively blocks the receptor for interleukin-2 and subsequent T-lymphocyte activation.

Novartis currently markets Simulect for the prevention of organ rejection in renal transplant recipients, and will continue to do so. Cerimon will be responsible for the development and marketing of Simulect (for injection) for IBD, and will share revenue from net sales with Novartis following the regulatory approval of Simulect for this indication. Cerimon intends to enter phase IIb studies with Simulect.

Cerimon also announced separately that it has acquired US rights to market and sell two topical formulations of diclofenac, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), which are currently marketed in Japan. Other formulations of topical diclofenac are marketed in Europe, but no topical NSAID is available in the US. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

—A.Techman