Allergan to Acquire Privately Held Dermatologic Company, Vicept Therapeutics

Vicept Therapeutics and Allergan, Inc. AGN today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement for Allergan to acquire all of the outstanding shares and assets of the privately-held dermatology company. The agreement, estimated to close in the third quarter of 2011, includes a $75 million cash up-front payment by Allergan plus up to an aggregate of $200 million in payments payable by Allergan contingent upon achieving certain future development and regulatory milestones plus additional payments contingent upon acquired products achieving certain sales milestones. Founded in 2009 and backed by Vivo Ventures, Fidelity Biosciences and Sofinnova Ventures, Vicept Therapeutics' lead investigational product, V-101, is a topical cream for the treatment of the erythema (redness) associated with rosacea that has achieved positive results in two randomized, placebo-controlled Phase II studies. “The two Phase II studies demonstrated the clinical potential of our lead product V-101 in Type I rosacea (Erythematous Rosacea), a dermatological problem for which there currently is no approved therapy,” said Dr. Neal Walker, President and CEO of Vicept. “We believe Allergan is the best company to complete the development and make the therapy available to the clinical community and their patients, fulfilling our shared mission.” “The acquisition of Vicept Therapeutics will further enhance our dermatology research and development pipeline, and matches our corporate strategy and long-standing commitment to patients suffering from skin disorders,” said Scott M. Whitcup, M.D., Executive Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer of Allergan. “We look forward to potentially providing a new treatment option to physicians and their patients suffering from this often burdensome condition.”