As part of its “Beyond Nicotine” ambitions, Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) has announced its acquisition of OtiTopic, a US respiratory drug development company, according to a company press release.

With its acquisition of OtiTopic, PMI has taken a further step on its way towards growing a “pipeline of inhaled therapeutics and respiratory drug delivery Beyond Nicotine”. OtiTopic was founded in 2012 as an innovative pharmaceutical start-up company with a late-stage inhalable acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) treatment for acute myocardial infarction. According to the press release, if approved, the treatment can address the significant unmet medical need of the over 83 million people, in the US alone, at intermediate to high risk for myocardial infarction.
Once clinical trials have been completed and approval by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been granted, PMI will use its expertise to bring ASPRIHALE®, the inhalable form of ASA to market.
“The acquisition of OtiTopic is an exciting step in PMI’s Beyond Nicotine ambitions,” said Jacek Olczak, CEO, PMI. “We have world-class expertise in the research, development, and commercialization of aerosolization and inhalable devices to help speed the delivery of this exciting product to market.”