Baxter International acquired SuppreMol for $225 million. The Martinsried, Germany-based company boasts an early-stage development portfolio of biologic immunoregulatory therapeutics for autoimmune diseases, focusing on the modulation of Fc receptor signaling pathways, an immune target that could have broad applications in autoimmune disorders, according to Baxter, which also now owns and will continue to operate SuppreMol’s operations in Munich.

SuppreMol’s pipeline includes lead candidate SM101, an investigational immunoregulatory treatment that has completed Phase IIA studies in idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP, a disorder causing low platelet levels) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE, a disorder in which the immune system
attacks healthy tissue). SM101’s Phase IIA data, presented during the American College of Rheumatology’s 2014 annual meeting, showed a dose response in multiple endpoints among patients with SLE treated with either one of two different doses of SM101 for six months. The pipeline also includes technologies with potential therapeutic applications in other autoimmune diseases as well as IgE-mediated allergic diseases.

“SuppreMol’s portfolio of novel investigational treatments complements and builds upon our leading and differentiated immunology portfolio, offering the opportunity to expand into new areas with significant market potential and unmet medical needs in autoimmune diseases,” said Ludwig Hantson, Ph.D., president of Baxter BioScience.

Last fall, Baxter and Halozyme Therapeutics began shipping Hyqvia  [Immune Globulin Infusion 10% (Human) with Recombinant Human Hyaluronidase], Baxter's recently FDA-approved subcutaneous immunoglobulin treatment for adult patients with primary immunodeficiency (PI) in the United States.

The product is the first subcutaneous immune globulin (IG) treatment approved for adult PI patients that allows a full monthly dose of IG to be administered with only one injection site and one infusion each month (once every three to four weeks depending on their established dosing regimen).

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