Acorda completes $525M deal to acquire Civitas

Acorda Therapeutics Inc. has closed on its $525 million acquisition of Civitas Therapeutics in Chelsea, Mass., the Ardsley-based biotechnology company announced Wednesday.

The all-cash purchase, first announced last month, gives Acorda global rights to the Boston-area pharmaceutical company”™s CVT-301, an inhalant drug in late-stage clinical trials on patients showing re-emergent symptoms of Parkinson”™s disease while taking oral medication.

The drug, for which Acorda expects to seek U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval within two years, could serve to propel the 19-year-old, publicly traded company into the international market for Parkinson”™s therapy. The progressive neurodegenerative disorder afflicts approximately 1 million people in the U.S. and 7 million to 10 million people worldwide, according to Acorda officials. Acorda marketers have projected peak sales of CVT-301 in excess of $500 million annually in the U.S.

Acorda also acquired Civitas”™ proprietary ARCUS pulmonary aerosol delivery technology and a 90,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Chelsea built for the commercial-scale production of drugs administered through ARCUS inhalers.

Acorda markets three drugs for treatment of multiple sclerosis and other neurological disorders and has eight other drugs in its development pipeline, according to the company.