Listen to this articleShionogi & Co. Ltd. plans to acquire a newly formed Jersey City pharmaceutical company for $2.5 billion, the Japan-based firm announced Dec. 22.
Also headquartered in Japan, Tanabe Pharma Corp. will create Tanabe Pharma America Inc. in New Jersey. The new entity will hold the rights to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis treatments Radicava ORS (edaravone) and IV Radicava.
The deal is expected to close on or after April 1, 2026. As part of the deal, the new company will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Shionogi Inc.
Commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, ALS affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, according to the Mayo Clinic. The disease of the nervous system causes loss of muscle control and gets worse over time, the organization noted.
Shionogi noted there is no cure for the disease. In 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Radicava ORS, an oral suspension, for the treatment of adults with ALS. The intravenous infusion version receied approval in 2017.
To date, more than 20,000 people in the U.S have used Radicava to treat ALS. According to the medication’s website, Radicava “may help slow the loss of physical function for as long as possible.”
There are currently more than 34,000 adults living with ALS, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Reducing the burden
“This critically important medicine was created to reduce the devastating burden of ALS, and we are honored to assume responsibility for it and to sustain and grow the relationships Tanabe Pharma has established with the patient and healthcare communities in the U.S.,” Isao Teshirogi, CEO of Shionogi & Co., said in a statement.
Shionogi Inc. President and CEO Nathan McCutcheon welcomed the “team and outstanding medicine to our U.S. business.”
McCutcheon added, “Going forward, this infrastructure will support future launches in rare disease including Shionogi’s development programs in Fragile X syndrome, Jordan’s Syndrome and Pompe disease.”
According to Shionogi, the acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive in fiscal year 2026, adding approximately $700 million in annual global sales.
