Horizon Pharma plc, a specialty biopharmaceutical company with a portfolio of products in arthritis, inflammation, and orphan diseases, has acquired the US rights to Pennsaid (diclofenac sodium topical solution) 2% w/w from Nuvo Research Inc. for a one-time payment of $45 million in cash. Pennsaid 2% is approved in the US for the treatment of the pain of osteoarthritis of the knee(s).

Pennsaid 2% is a second-generation version of Pennsaid (diclofenac sodium topical solution) 1.5% w/w. Effective January 1, 2015, Pennsaid 1.5% w/w will no longer be marketed in the US. Nuvo will retain its existing ex-U.S. rights to Pennsaid  1.5% and Pennsaid 2%. 

Pennsaid  2% was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration  on January 16, 2014.

Source: Horizon Pharma