Sepracor licenses antihistamine patents to UCB

By Lisa Kerner

Erie, Pa., Feb. 23 - UCB SA and Sepracor, Inc. announced a licensing agreement relating to the antihistamine levocetirizine.

Sepracor has exclusively licensed to UCB all of Sepracor's patents and patent applications in the United States regarding levocetirizine.

UCB will pay royalties to Sepracor on U.S. sales of levocetirizine products, according to a company news release.

Under a separate agreement, Sepracor currently earns royalties from UCB on sales of levocetirizine in European countries where the product is sold.

Levocetirizine is marketed by UCB under the brand names Xyzal and Xusal in the European Union for treatment of symptoms of seasonal and perennial allergic rhinitis and hives in adults and children aged six years and older.

"Sepracor is pleased to extend its licensing arrangement for levocetirizine to the United States," Sepracor chairman and chief executive officer Timothy J. Barberich said in the release.

"UCB has built a successful antihistamine franchise worldwide and we are optimistic about the opportunity UCB has to expand it with the introduction of levocetirizine in the United States."

Belgium-based UCB is focused on pharmaceuticals and biotechnology products for central nervous system disorders, allergy/respiratory diseases, immune and inflammatory disorders and oncology.

Sepracor is a research-based pharmaceutical company with a focus on respiratory and central nervous system disorders. The company is located in Marlborough, Mass.

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