NuPathe plots $86M IPO

Yet another biotech company has announced plans to file an IPO. Conshohocken, PA-based NuPathe, which is developing a transdermal patch to treat migraines, hopes to raise $86.3 million, according to an SEC filing. The company is applying to list its common stock on NASDAQ under the symbol PATH.

NuPathe's most advanced product candidate, Zelrix, is a single-use patch that delivers the commonly prescribed migraine drug sumatriptan. The company completed a Phase III trial for Zelrix in July 2009 and expects to submit an NDA in the fourth quarter of 2010. If the patch is approved, NuPathe said in its filing that the company plans to build a 100-person sales force to launch Zelrix in the first half of 2012. "We may seek to further penetrate the U.S. market in the future by expanding our sales force or through collaborations with other pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies. We may also seek to commercialize Zelrix outside the U.S., although we currently plan to do so only with a collaborator," the developer added in its filing.

NuPathe's pipeline also includes two preclinical drugs: NP201 for the continuous symptomatic treatment of Parkinson's disease and NP202 for the long-term treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Human trials for those programs are expected to start in 2011 and 2012, respectively.

- here's NuPathe's SEC filing
- see this article for more (sub. req.)