GlaxoSmithKline Plc, Europe’s biggest drugmaker, will acquire Sirtris Pharmaceuticals Inc for $720 million, enhancing the British drugmakers presence in the field of sirtuins.
Glaxo said it will commence a cash tender offer for all outstanding shares of Sirtris, at $22.50 per share. The offer is at an 84 percent premium to their closing price of $12.23 Tuesday.
The tender offer to purchase all of the outstanding shares of Sirtris will begin in early May and close in the second quarter of 2008, the companies said.
Experimental drug
Sirtris, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, focuses on developing drugs that activate sirtuins, a class of enzymes involved in aging. Its most advanced compound is a formulation of resveratrol, a substance found in red wine and plants.
The purchase gives the drugmaker a foothold in a new area of research and could lead to treatments for diabetes, muscle wasting and neurodegeneration, Glaxo said.
Type 2
Post-acquisition, Sirtris will become part of Glaxo's drug discovery organization, while continuing to operate from laboratories in Cambridge, Mass., as an autonomous drug discovery unit. CEO Christoph Westphal and the management team will continue to lead the unit.
Sirtris, founded in 2004, has so far focused on Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. But Sirtris eventually hopes to develop drugs to treat a number of aging-related diseases, such as cancer.
"Almost all diseases have as their basis the aging process, including cancer and heart disease," Sirtris chief executive Christoph Westphal said.
April 23, 2008
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