(Yicai) July 7 -- Chinese drugmaker Conba Pharmaceutical has signed a deal with Adneuris Therapeutics, a unit of Tris Pharma, securing the exclusive rights to the US company's experimental analgesic in the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macao.

Under the deal, Conba will pay Adneuris as much as USD111.5 million for the rights to develop, register, and commercialize Cebranopadol, a first-in-class oral painkiller under development, the Hangzhou-based company announced late yesterday.

The fee includes a USD17.5 million upfront payment and milestone payments of up to USD94 million. Milestones are tied to key events such as regulatory approvals in the United States and China, as well as the achievement of specified annual sales thresholds within the licensed markets.

Cebranopadol targets the nociceptin/orphanin FQ opioid peptide and mu-opioid peptide receptors, Conba said, adding that its primary indication is for the treatment of postoperative acute pain, although future expansion into chronic pain treatment remains possible. The drug has completed Phase III clinical trials and is expected to seek New Drug Application with the US Food and Drug Administration later this year.

Conba’s shares [SHA: 600572] closed 1.2 percent lower at CNY4.08 (71 US cents) apiece today. The broader Shanghai stock market fell 1.3 percent.

China's postoperative acute pain market is expected to grow at an annual rate of over 6 percent, reaching more than CNY32 billion (USD4.7 billion) by 2030, Conba pointed out. However, traditional opioid medications, which dominate the treatment of moderate to severe pain, are associated with various side effects, including addiction, constraining their usage, it added.

The evolving market landscape may create favorable conditions for newer analgesics, such as Cebranopadol, that have better safety profiles, Conba stressed.

Adneuris is a New Jersey-based developer of innovative pain therapies founded in 2019. Cebranopadol is its lead product. Tris Pharma, its parent, develops and makes innovative drugs for the central nervous system, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and pain management, with several new drugs already approved.

Editor: Martin Kadiev