NVS Novartis AG

By Olivia Bugault

Novartis AG said Thursday that it has entered into an agreement for the acquisition of Massachusetts-based neuroscience company Cadent Therapeutics.

Cadent will receive $210 million upfront and up to $560 million in milestone payments, for a potential total of $770 million, Cadent Therapeutics said in a separate statement on Thursday.

"The acquisition adds two new clinical stage programs to the Novartis neuroscience portfolio, one for schizophrenia and the other for movement disorders," the pharmaceutical giant said. The acquisition also includes MIJ821, a clinical stage molecule that Novartis licensed exclusively from Cadent in 2015 for treatment-resistant depression.

With the acquisition, Novartis wants to make progress in developing potential neuropsychiatric medicines, it said.

The deal should close during the first quarter of 2021, Novartis said.

Write to Olivia Bugault at olivia.bugault@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 17, 2020 02:30 ET (07:30 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.