Novo Nordisk has entered an agreement to acquire ocedurenone for uncontrolled hypertension with potential application in cardiovascular and kidney disease from KBP Biosciences, for as much as $1.3 billion.
 
Ocedurenone is an orally administered, small molecule, non-steroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist (nsMRA) that is currently being evaluated in the phase 3 trial CLARION-CKD in uncontrolled hypertension and advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD). 
 
To date, ocedurenone has been investigated in nine clinical trials including the BLOCK-CKD Phase 2b trial. The BLOCK-CKD trial met its primary endpoint with ocedurenone demonstrating a clinically meaningful and statistically significant improvement in systolic blood pressure (SBP) in patients with stage 3b/4 CKD and uncontrolled hypertension. 
 
Novo Nordisk expects to initiate phase 3 trials in additional cardiovascular and kidney disease indications in the coming years, aiming to maximize the full potential of ocedurenone.
 
“We are delighted to pass the ocedurenone torch to Novo Nordisk. We believe this transition could unlock the full potential of ocedurenone and benefit more patients with cardiovascular and kidney disease worldwide,” said Dr. Zhenhua Huang, founder and chairman of KBP Biosciences. “The transition is an exciting inflection point in the discovery, research and development work on ocedurenone carried out by KBP, a young player still establishing itself in the global pharmaceutical industry,” added Dr. Fred Yang, chief development officer of KBP Biosciences.
 
“We look forward to adding ocedurenone to our pipeline as it will complement our current development programs in cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease,” said Camilla Sylvest, executive vice president, Commercial Strategy & Corporate Affairs at Novo Nordisk. “This deal is closely aligned with our strategic focus on expanding from our core in diabetes into other serious chronic diseases, including through novel drug modalities, to help many more patients living with unmet medical needs.”