Japanese drugmaker Otsuka Pharmaceutical has agreed to acquire Astex Pharmaceuticals for $866m in an all-cash tender offer.
Under the deal, Astex's fragment-based drug design technology called 'PYRAMID' will be integrated into Otsuka, which would strengthen its portfolio of cancer drugs.
The move is expected to improve Otsuka's discovery and development of cancer drugs as well as research for potential central nervous system treatments.
Astex's PYRAMID technology, which is a new drug discovery platform, is aimed at bringing new therapies for patients and physicians.
With the deal, Otsuka also expects to strengthen its oncology development portfolio and inline oncology offerings.
Otsuka Pharmaceutical president and representative director Taro Iwamoto said, "Astex's unique fragment-based drug discovery technology and clinical oncology research and development capabilities, born out of the passion of its researchers, exemplify our corporate mottos and belief in Sozosei (Creativity) and Jissho (Proof through Execution)."
The move is part of Otsuka's strategies to increase revenue streams as patents for its mainstay Abilify schizophrenia treatment will begin to expire in 2015.
