Pfizer is paying Biohaven Pharmaceutical a total of $500 million upfront plus up to $740 million in potential milestone payments for the rights to market Biohaven’s rimegepant (Nurtec ODT) and zavegepant (BHV-3500) outside of the US. Rimegepant is an oral drug approved in the US and several other countries for the prevention and treatment of migraine; zavegepant is a nasal spray in development for the acute treatment of migraine.
Biohaven is retaining the US rights to zavegepant and will continue to be responsible for development of the nasal spray worldwide. In December 2021, Biohaven announced that a Phase 3 trial of intranasal zavegepant in patients with moderate to severe migraine met its primary endpoints, and the company says that it plans to submit an NDA in the first quarter of 2022.
According to Biohaven, “Zavegepant, if approved, would be the first intranasal CGRP receptor antagonist for the acute treatment of migraine in adults. Intranasal treatments like zavegepant offer additional potential benefits including ultra-rapid speed of onset and a non-oral delivery for patients who experience significant nausea or vomiting.”
Biohaven Chairman and CEO Vlad Coric commented, “Together we hope to establish a world-class migraine business that can deliver on our promise of providing new treatment options for people living with this debilitating disease.”
Read the Biohaven and Pfizer press release.
