French pharmaceutical company Servier announced on Monday that it has completed the acquisition of the muscular dystrophy business of Edgewise Therapeutics Inc (Nasdaq:EWTX) following regulatory clearance and customary closing conditions.

Servier agreed to pay up to USD2.65bn, including upfront payment of USD1.55bn plus up to USD1.1bn in regulatory and commercial milestone payments.

The acquisition advances Servier's rare neurology pipeline with late-stage asset, sevasemten, currently being investigated in a pivotal cohort in Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD), and in phase 2 in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). It also provides Servier with additional capabilities by integrating Edgewise Therapeutics' expertise to advance the development of sevasemten.

Sevasemten is an orally administered potential first-in-class fast skeletal myosin inhibitor designed to preserve and protect unstable muscle against contraction-induced damage in individuals living with rare muscular dystrophy.

BMD is a rare, X-linked genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle loss, with currently no approved treatment for patients. The loss of muscle function is irreversible and impacts patients' abilities to perform everyday activities like walking. DMD is a more severe, recessive X-linked genetic, degenerative muscle disorder beginning at birth that causes patients to lose their walking ability by their early teens. It is the most common type of muscular dystrophy, with a median life expectancy of around 30 years.