March 24, 2017
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
PHILADELPHIA – Boston-based Paratek Pharmaceuticals has opened an office in King of Prussia, Penn. as it prepares for the launch of its lead candidate Omadacycline for serious community-acquired bacterial infections like pneumonia.
The company opened the marketing office in KoP in 2015 with seven employees, but that has expanded to 30, The Inquirer of Philadelphia reported. Later this week, Paratek will open a 19,000 square-foot facility in Montgomery County to support expected growth. The new space could allow for the Pennsylvania space to eventually employ up to 100 people. One of the reasons the site was selected was the abundance of experienced pharma talent in the area, Evan Loh, Paratek’s president and chief operating officer, told the Inquirer. If the omadacycline Phase III results are positive, the company will have to increase staff again in order to handle the New Drug Application and commercialization of the product.
The basis of Paratek’s research is based on tetracycline, the 70-year-old antibiotic that is prescribed for a wide variety of uses. Paratek is using tetracycline to keep ahead of bacterial infections. The company is focused on developing the next generation of antibiotics. Michael Bigham, Paratek’s chief executive officer told BioSpace in an exclusive interview earlier this year that tetracycline was selected because it’s well-tolerated and its efficacy is well-known. Following a decade of research, the company settled on two tetracycline models—currently in Phase III development—Sarecycline for use in skin infections and Omadacycline.
Sarecycline, is a once-daily, oral, narrow spectrum tetracycline-derived antibiotic with potent anti-inflammatory properties for the potential treatment of acne and rosacea in the community setting. Allergan owns the U.S. rights for the development and commercialization of sarecycline.
Omadacycline is being developed as both an oral and for intravenous use. The company anticipates the release of top-line data in the second quarter of 2017. If the readouts are as promising as the company hopes, Paratek plans to file a New Drug Application in early 2018, which is the schedule Bigham predicted earlier this year. If all goes well with the NDA, the company hopes to see the product launched by 2019.
The last two years have been ones of explosive growth for Paratek. The company started 2015 with 15 employees and as of the end of 2016, employed 50 people. It looks like 2017 will continue the growth trend as the company is expecting a “milestone heavy year.” Paratek is expecting readouts from its two Phase III studies this year, which so far look to be promising.
