Abbvie Purchases Syndesi Therapeutics for its Alzheimer’s Expertise

March 2, 2022

Abbvie has purchased Syndesi Therapeutics in a $1 billion deal. The drugmaker seeks to access Syndesi’s research into treating cognitive impairment in neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer’s disease. This comes after Abbvie’s setbacks with their tau-targetted drug ABBV-8E12, which was dropped when it failed to show efficacy in a stage II trial. The acquisition of Syndesi is part of Abbvie’s recent trend of pivoting towards neurology.

According to Fleur Jeffries of PM Live, “The acquisition further reinforces AbbVie’s neurology pipeline, as four years ago, Syndesi Therapeutics gained the rights to UCB’s synaptic vesicle protein 2A (SV2A) programme, which aims to achieve synaptic efficiency, targeting the communication between neurons in the brain, which – most notably in Alzheimer’s – typically deteriorates as degenerative illnesses progress.”