Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB (Sobi) is to pay up to $1.5 billion to acquire Arthrosi Therapeutics Inc of San Diego, US, which has a Phase 3 product for gout, a type of inflammatory arthritis caused by a build-up of uric acid in the blood. Sobi already has a product for gout in registrational studies in the US. The acquisition will expand its presence in the field where disease prevalence is expected to rise by more than 70% from 2020 to 2050 due to population growth and ageing, according to The Lancet Rheumatology.
