Allergan acquires topical dermatology company Topokine Therapeutics

Allergan has acquired Topokine Therapeutics for an upfront payment of $85 million and success-based development and sales milestones for XAF5.

Topokine is a privately held, clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing topical medicines for fat reduction. XAF5 is a first-in-class topical agent in late-stage development for the treatment of steatoblepharon, also known as undereye bags.

Applied to the lower eyelids once nightly, XAF5 penetrates the skin and acts pharmacologically on fat cells to shrink undereye bags. In XOPH5-OINT-2, a Phase II randomised, placebo-controlled clinical trial, XAF5 met the primary endpoint achieving statistically significant and clinically meaningful reductions in undereye bags. In January 2016 Topokine initiated XOPH5-OINT-3, a pivotal Phase IIb/III study of XAF5.

Commenting on the acquisition, David Nicholson, Executive Vice President and President, Global Brands Research & Development at Allergan, said: “The acquisition of Topokine and its XAF5 technology adds an innovative technology to Allergan’s industry leading mid-to-late stage pipeline of more than 70 programmes and bolsters our leadership in medical aesthetics. XAF5 has the potential to be the first topical fat reduction product for the treatment of steatoblepharon, a condition with no current therapeutic options available for patients. We look forward to continuing the outstanding development work conducted by the Topokine team to bring this innovative medical aesthetic treatment to market.”

“Allergan is a leader in medical and facial aesthetics, with unparalleled commercial and development expertise in the medical aesthetics community and a laser-focus on innovation. These characteristics make Allergan ideally suited to continue the successful development and maximize the potential commercialization of XAF5,” said Murat Kalayoglu, MD, PhD, Topokine’s Chief Executive Officer and a board-certified ophthalmologist.