Lantheus acquires Meilleur, including global rights to PET imaging agent for Alzheimer’s

Lantheus Holdings Inc. has announced the acquisition of Meilleur Technologies Inc., which includes the transfer of its rights to an amyloid-beta positron emission tomography imaging agent.

According to a press release from Lantheus, NAV-4694, also known as F18-flutafuranol, is being tested in a phase 3 clinical trial as well as in academic and industry investigational therapeutic trials.

Meilleur’s transfer of NAV-4694 bolsters Lantheus’ stable of Alzheimer’s disease-related diagnostics, joining the former’s next-generation F18-labeled PET imaging agent candidate MK-6240 (florquinitau), which targets tau tangles indicative of AD pathology.

Updated guidelines from the National Institute on Aging and the Alzheimer's Association (NIA-AA) stipulate that biologic terms should define AD through protein-based biomarkers, according to the release.

These guidelines suggest using biomarkers, including both amyloid- and tau-PET imaging, for AD diagnosis as well as to assess disease severity.

“This acquisition solidifies our commitment to neurology, specifically for Alzheimer’s disease management, and reinforces our radiopharmaceutical leadership,” Lantheus CEO Brian Markison said in the release. “With the combination of MK-6240 and NAV-4694, we are poised to provide important insights for guiding the use and assessing the impact of novel disease-modifying treatments.”