- Corporate
Corporate information
Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd. is headquartered in Basel, Switzerland,
and listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (SIX:BSLN). Basilea's integrated research
and development operations are currently focused on new antibacterial,
antifungal and oncology agents to fight drug resistance and on the development
of dermatology drugs. Basilea's products are targeted to satisfy high medical
and patient needs in the hospital and specialty care setting.
Basilea owns a broad and balanced late-stage
product portfolio including novel treatments for resistant bacterial
infections, systemic fungal infections and severe skin diseases. The company's
diversified portfolio includes two commercialized drugs (alitretinoin,
ceftobiprole), one investigational drug in phase III (isavuconazole) as well as
innovative earlier-stage programs. Toctino® (alitretinoin) is marketed in the United Kingdom, Denmark,
France, Germany and Switzerland and is approved in Austria, Belgium,
Canada, Finland, Luxemburg, the Netherlands and Spain. Ceftobiprole is
marketed in Canada under the
brand name ZEFTERA™ and in Switzerland
under Zevtera™.
Basilea has a fully integrated R&D organization and has set up commercial
organizations in Canada, France, Germany, the
Nordics, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, while it is building
sales and marketing organizations in other countries to commercialize
alitretinoin, subject to approval.
Pipeline
The company’s diversified portfolio includes two commercialized
drugs (alitretinoin, ceftobiprole), one investigational drug
(isavuconazole) in phase III as well as substantial innovative
early-stage programs.
- Alitretinoin belongs to the well studied family of retinoids and is targeted at patients with severe chronic hand eczema who do not respond to topical corticosteroids. Alitretinoin is marketed in the United Kingdom, Denmark, France, Germany and Switzerland and is approved in Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, Luxemburg, the Netherlands and Spain under the trade name Toctino®. Alitretinoin has been recommended for approval in additional 16 European countries. Furthermore, a phase III clinical trial on alitretinoin for the treatment of severe chronic hand eczema is ongoing in the U.S.
- Ceftobiprole is
the first approved broad-spectrum anti-MRSA antibiotic belonging to the
cephalosporin class. Ceftobiprole is marketed in Canada under the brand
name ZEFTERA™ for the treatment of complicated skin and skin structure
infections (cSSSI), including non-limb threatening diabetic foot
infections without concomitant osteomyelitis; and Switzerland
(Zevtera™) for the treatment of complicated skin and
and soft tissue infections (cSSTI) including
diabetic foot infections (DFI) without concomitant osteomyelitis.
- Isavuconazole, a novel broad-spectrum antifungal, is being developed for the treatment of severe invasive fungal infections and has the potential to become the best-in-class azole. The water-soluble compound can be administered intravenously or orally. The investigational drug has received fast track status from the FDA and is in clinical phase III development. Basilea Pharmaceutica International Ltd. has entered into a license, co-development and co-promotion agreement with Astellas Pharma Inc. for isavuconazole for the treatment of life-threatening invasive fungal infections on a worldwide basis, including an option for Japan.
- Preclinical programs: Basilea pursues research programs in lead optimization as well as early stages of discovery. The most advanced preclinical development compounds are BAL30072 and BAL27862. The novel antibiotic BAL30072 is active against some of the most difficult-to-treat multi-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, such as Pseudomonas and Acinetobacter. BAL27862 is a novel anti-cancer compound with activity against a broad range of tumor types, including those unresponsive to standard therapeutics.
History
Basilea was founded in 2000 and went public on the Swiss Exchange in 2004.
© 2010 Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd.
