(Yicai) Jan. 8 -- Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis said it has inked a deal to acquire SanReno Therapeutics, a Chinese biotechnology firm that specializes in developing renal disease treatments.

SanReno will be merged into Novartis China, the Basel-based buyer announced on Jan. 5, without disclosing any financial details.

SanReno has exclusive rights to develop and commercialize Atrasentan and Zigakibart in China, two innovative drugs targeting chronic kidney disease immunoglobulin A nephropathy. The drugs are in clinical research and development.

About 120 million Chinese, or almost 11 percent of adults, have chronic kidney disease, and about 1 million have been diagnosed with IgA nephropathy, according to data from Novartis. There is still a huge unmet clinical demand for treating IgA patients in China, the company said.

This was the first time for Novartis to make a formal acquisition offer for a Chinese biotech firm. The move will help it expand its layout in kidney disease drugs and strengthen its market position in China by consolidating its resources.

SanReno, a joint venture of Seattle-based Chinook and several life sciences investors set up in 2021, is a clinical-stage firm that specializes in the development, exploration, and commercialization of innovative therapies for kidney diseases. Novartis took a stake in the Shanghai-based firm after buying Chinook in August.

There have been many cases of multinational pharma companies buying individual products through licensing partnerships, but they have gradually begun to buy whole companies, an industry insider told Yicai. It remains to be seen whether this will become a general trend, the person noted.

On Dec. 26, UK-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said it would invest USD1.2 billion to acquire China's Gracell Biotechnologies to enrich its growing pipeline of cell therapies.

Editor: Martin Kadiev