The botox-maker adds an acne and stretch mark treatment to its portfolio. 

Allergan plc has agreed to acquire Elastagen Pty Ltd. Elastagen is a clinical stage company that develops medical device products based on recombinant tropoelastin. Tropoelastin, the buzz-worthy technology that prompted the acquisition, is the precursor of elastin—a vital component of youthful skin. The tropoelastin that Elastagen manufactures is an identical copy of what naturally occurs in human tissue, meaning the clinical application opportunities for this has tremendous potential . The company is particularly pointing to usage in the treatment of acne scars, stretch marks, aesthetic skin repair and surgical wound repair.

For Allergen, the acquisition adds to the already robust aesthetic portfolio and solidifys their place within this category. “Our Juvederm collection of fillers has sales of over $1 billion globally and is one of the fastest growing parts of our Aesthetics business,” said Bill Meury, Chief Commercial Officer at Allergan. “This acquisition and the development of a next generation of injectables based on this technology will ensure Allergan offers innovative filler products for years to come.”

Elastagen CEO, Robert Daniels added to this, noting: “Partnering with Allergan, a leader in medical aesthetics, is incredibly exciting. I thank the Elastagen team for their hard work and dedication in developing our innovative tropoelastin product pipeline and look forward to working with Allergan to take these products to market.” 

The company is spun out of work done by researchers at the University of Sydney. Elastagen’s founding scientist Prof Anthony Weiss thanked his team in a forward-looking statement on the progression of this discovery. “Our technology has come a long way from the lab bench at the University of Sydney towards developing products for patients around the world. I thank my team at the University of Sydney and greatly look forward to seeing our science commercialized by Allergan.”

Allergan has paid Elastagen $95M upfront and will honor contingent, commercial payments as part of the terms of the acquisition.