Pharmanovia Enters Into an Exclusive Licensing Agreement With Aeterna Zentaris for the First and Only Orally Administered Approved Medicine for the Diagnosis of Growth Hormone Deficiency in Adults
16.3.2023 15:50:00 EET | Business Wire | Press release
Pharmanovia, a global pharmaceutical company that commercialises novel medicines and revitalises, extends and expands the lifecycle of established medicines, has today announced the expansion of its endocrinology portfolio with a new licensing agreement for GHRYVELIN™ (macimorelin), a novel medicine used for diagnosing Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency (AGHD) from Aeterna Zentaris.
The agreement gives Pharmanovia the exclusive commercial rights in the UK and EEA.
AGHD is a rare and serious condition that affects 2 to 3 people in 10,000 with significant risk of morbidity and reduced quality of life. It is underdiagnosed and often missed in patients.1
It is characterised by a number of variable and common symptoms including reduced energy levels, altered body composition, osteoporosis (reduced bone mineral density), reduced muscle strength, lipid abnormalities such as increased LDL cholesterol, insulin resistance, and impaired cardiac function.2
Pharmanovia CEO, Dr James Burt commented; ‘’Endocrinology is the largest of our four core therapy areas and the in-licensing of this important novel medicine, the second in-licensing deal of a novel medicine in almost as many weeks, speaks to our ability to in-licence novel, complementary products in the therapeutic settings we support.”
“We are well placed to use the knowledge and the platform we’ve built through our current endocrinology work to ensure that more patients get the diagnosis they need for this rare and serious condition. Furthermore today’s announcement presents a rare opportunity to license in a medicine that naturally synergises with one of the core growth products in our current portfolio.”
Dr Klaus Paulini, CEO of Aeterna Zentaris, added: “Pharmanovia has expertise marketing diagnostic testing solutions combined with an established footprint in endocrinology across Europe, so this partnership was a natural choice. We’re excited to leverage their knowledge to ensure that more patients benefit from an improved testing experience and reduction in unnecessary treatment for patients.”
About Pharmanovia
Pharmanovia is a global lifecycle management healthcare company. Our purpose is to make medicines fit for tomorrow, to improve the lives of patients globally.
We do this by enhancing established medicines either by rediscovering, repurposing or re-engineering iconic brands to improve patient outcomes and experiences both through in-house development and through strategic partnerships.
Our diverse and growing team operate in over 160 countries across the globe, delivering high-quality solutions, ethically and sustainably, across our four core therapeutic areas – Endocrinology, Neurology, Cardiovascular and Oncology.
About Aeterna Zentaris
Aeterna Zentaris is a specialty biopharmaceutical company developing and commercialising a diversified portfolio of pharmaceutical and diagnostic products focused on areas of significant unmet medical need. The Company's lead product, macimorelin (Macrilen™; Ghryvelin®), is the first and only U.S. FDA and European Commission approved oral test indicated for the diagnosis of adult growth hormone deficiency (AGHD). The Company is leveraging the clinical success and compelling safety profile of macimorelin to develop it for the diagnosis of childhood-onset growth hormone deficiency (CGHD), an area of significant unmet need, in collaboration with Novo Nordisk.
About Macimorelin
Macimorelin is marketed under the brand name GHRYVELIN™ (macimorelin) in the UK and European Economic Area.
GHRYVELIN™ a ghrelin agonist, is an orally active small molecule that stimulates the secretion of growth hormone from the pituitary gland. Stimulated growth hormone levels are measured in blood samples after oral administration of GHRYVELIN™ for the assessment of AGHD. of GHRYVELIN™ was granted in 2019, based on Phase III data showing that oral macimorelin provides accuracy comparable to that of standard insulin tolerance testing (ITT)4, but has a more favourable safety profile compared to ITT. Oral GHRYVELIN™ also reduces false positive test results, helping to avoid unnecessary treatment of patients.3
References
1 J Endocr Soc. 2022 Jul 1; 6(7): bvac077. Andrew R Hoffman, Tracy Mathison, Deno Andrews, Kristine Murray, Nicky Kelepouris, and Maria Fleseriu - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9165431/ -last accessed 1.3.2023
2 Yuen KCJ, Biller BMK, Radovick S, et al -. Endocr Pract. 2019;25(11):1191-1232. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31760824/ - last accessed 1.3.2023
3 Garcia JM et al. Macimorelin as a Diagnostic Test for Adult GH Deficiency. J Clin Endocrinol Metab, 2018, 103(8): 3083-3093 - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29860473/ - last accessed 1.3.2023
4 https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/assessment-report/ghryvelin-previously-macimorelin-aeterna-zentaris-epar-public-assessment-report_en.pdf – last accessed 1.3.2023
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230315005846/en/
Contact information
For further information:
Alison Dyson, Director of Communications, Pharmanovia
07442 256310/ alison.dyson@pharmanovia.com
Or pharmanovia@67health.co.uk
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Blackstone Raises its Largest Asia Private Equity Fund at $13.1 Billion2.6.2026 04:00:00 EEST | Press release
Blackstone (NYSE: BX) today announced the final close of Blackstone Capital Partners Asia III (“BCP Asia III”) at $13.1 billion, exceeding its $10 billion target and marking the firm’s largest private equity fundraise in the region. The oversubscribed fund reached its hard cap and builds on the strong performance of the strategy’s first two vintages, with this close representing more than double the amount of capital raised for its predecessor vehicle. Joe Baratta, Global Head of Blackstone Private Equity Strategies,said: “We are grateful for the continued trust of our investors in Blackstone and our leading Asia Private Equity franchise. This successful fundraise reflects the strength of our platform and our ability to perform through cycles. Asia Pacific is the fastest-growing region in the world, presenting compelling opportunities to invest at scale behind our high-conviction themes and deliver for our investors.” Amit Dixit, Head of Asia for Blackstone Private Equity, said: “For t
Phison Collaborates with Intel to Bring Larger Local AI Workloads to Intel AI PC Platforms2.6.2026 03:00:00 EEST | Press release
COMPUTEX — Phison Electronics (8299TT), a global leader in NAND flash controllers and storage solutions, today announced a collaboration with Intel to enable AI PCs to deploy larger, more capable AI applications locally. The collaboration combines Intel® Core™ Ultra Series 3 processors with Phison’s Pascari aiDAPTIV, a memory extension solution that unblocks memory-constrained systems to support larger Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) AI models, longer-running AI sessions and agentic AI workflows. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260601878925/en/ Phison and Intel collaborate to bring larger local AI workloads to Intel AI PC Platforms Today, AI PCs are moving beyond simple assistant applications toward more advanced local AI use cases. These solutions now support end users and businesses in document analysis, multi-step workflow execution and private data protection while reducing reliance on cloud-only AI services. As
Phison Unlocks Full-Scale AI Deployment Across Industries2.6.2026 03:00:00 EEST | Press release
Phison Electronics (8299TT), a global leader in NAND flash controllers and storage solutions, today announced a new strategic initiative at COMPUTEX 2026 under the theme “AI Enabler: Evolving Data Storage Intelligence.” Expanding beyond its role as a storage technology leader, Phison is taking a systems-level approach to AI solutions spanning AI infrastructure, edge AI computing and AI software platforms. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260601070396/en/ Phison evolving data storage intelligence at COMPUTEX 2026 At COMPUTEX 2026, Phison is showcasing comprehensive AI storage and computing architecture solutions designed to address key challenges facing enterprises and end users in the AI era, including high AI deployment costs, GPU and memory limitations, data privacy concerns and the increasing storage bandwidth and power demands driven by AI workloads. Four Core Technology Directions for AI and High-Speed Sto
SymphonyAI Brings AI-Powered Assortment and Space Platform to Global CPGs, Compressing Category Review Cycles from Weeks to Days2.6.2026 01:35:00 EEST | Press release
Planogram compliance failures, undetected out-of-stocks, and the lag between headquarters planning and store-level execution cost grocers measurably in comp sales, shrink, and associate labor hours. The tools built for category planning have never been designed to close that execution gap. In response, SymphonyAI, a global leader in Vertical AI, today announced the availability of CINDE Assortment and Space for CPGs, an AI platform that closes the loop between assortment strategy, planogram execution, and in-store compliance, compressing the category review cycle from four to six weeks to a matter of days. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260602137061/en/ The platform is underpinned by SymphonyAI's Transferable Demand AI, a model trained across 25 years of retail data and validated in production across more than 500 global CPG deployments, including PepsiCo, Southern Co-op, and every one of the top 25 global CP
SymphonyAI Launches CINDE Retail Media Intelligence to Connect Merchandising and Media for Mid-to-Large Grocers2.6.2026 01:05:00 EEST | Press release
Retail media has become the fastest-growing profit line in grocery, yet the billions of dollars CPG advertisers invest in it every year flow through a system where media buyers and merchants never see the same data. Merchants plan assortments, negotiate trade spend, and execute resets with no visibility into which CPG media investments are driving category velocity, while CPG advertisers renew or walk based on incrementality proof that most retailers cannot provide. To solve for this, SymphonyAI, a global leader in Vertical AI, today announced the general availability of CINDE Retail Media Intelligence (RMI), an AI platform that connects merchandising, media, and shopper intelligence into a single closed-loop system, giving retailers and CPG partners shared visibility into how every media dollar moves category turns, trade spend ROI, and gross margin across every reset cycle, joint business planning negotiation, and campaign flight. This press release features multimedia. View the full
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom