J&J hands off non-opioid painkiller to an upstart in the race for next-gen analgesics
Still facing billions in potential liability for its alleged role in the opioid epidemic, J&J announced a global out-licensing deal for one of its non-opioid painkiller candidates and a suite of backup compounds.
The NJ-based giant signed the deal with the Palo Alto biotech upstart Neumentum. No figures were given.
The drug, JNJ-10450232, is an oral non-opioid analgesic that recently saw mixed results from a Phase IIa clinical trial on dental patients. That trial tested two doses of the drug against acetaminophen and a placebo on 269 patients suffering tooth removal pain. The higher dose performed comparably, if slightly worse than acetaminophen.
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