AstraZeneca today announced that on Tuesday 19 June 2012 it completed its acquisition of San Diego, California-based biotechnology company Ardea Biosciences, Inc. The merger was approved by Ardea's stockholders.
Upon completion of the merger, each outstanding share of Ardea common stock was cancelled and converted into the right to receive $32.00, in cash, without interest, and shares of Ardea common stock ceased trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market.
As previously announced, the acquisition strengthens AstraZeneca's late-stage pipeline with the addition of lesinurad, a potential next-generation treatment for the chronic management of hyperuricaemia in patients with gout.
About Ardea
Ardea is a biotechnology company based in San Diego, California, focused on the development of small-molecule therapeutics for the treatment of serious diseases. Ardea's most advanced clinical-stage product candidates include lesinurad, formerly known as RDEA594, a selective, oral URAT1 transporter inhibitor for the chronic management of hyperuricemia in patients with gout, and BAY 86-9766, formerly known as RDEA119, a specific inhibitor of mitogen-activated ERK kinase (MEK) for the treatment of cancer, which is being developed under a global license agreement with Bayer HealthCare AG.
About AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca is a global, innovation-driven biopharmaceutical business with a primary focus on the discovery, development and commercialisation of prescription medicines for gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, neuroscience, respiratory and inflammation, oncology and infectious disease. AstraZeneca operates in over 100 countries and its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide.