Purdue Pharma Seeks Court OK to Develop New Injectable Opioid Rescue Drug

Purdue Pharma has requested permission from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York to develop a new product to reverse opioid overdoses.

Purdue is seeking authorization for a development agreement between its affiliate, Greenfield Bioventures, and an unnamed pharmaceutical company. The proposed agreement would allow Purdue to grant intellectual property related to the nalmefene injectable to its unnamed partner, which in turn, would license its autoinjector technology to Purdue.

Nalmefene HCl is a more potent and longer-lasting alternative to the commonly used opioid reversal treatment naloxone, Purdue said in its filing with the court. But the nalmefene injectable is not meant to be a replacement for naloxone, the company said in its filing with the court. Rather, the new product should be considered an addition to the opioid rescue took kit. The partner’s autoinjector technology is critical for safe public use of the overdose reversal drug, Purdue wrote.

Purdue’s request does not name a specific drug, but in March of last year, the company reported that the FDA had given its nalmefene HCl product Revex a fast track designation.